Based on documents compiled by leading French philosopher Michel Foucault, this unique and original film charts the gruesome events which took place in a Normandy village in 1835, when a young man, Pierre Rivière, murdered his mother, sister and brother before fleeing to the countryside. With a cast made up of real-life villagers from the area where the events took place, the detailed re-enactments and careful attention to the gestures of their ancestors serve to create an intense and sometimes disturbing atmosphere of hyper-realism. Details of the crime and of the trial that followed are told from varied perspectives, including the written confession of Pierre himself, and form a rich and complex narrative that interrogates the concepts of “truth” and “history”.
Directing | René Allio | Director |
Editing | Sylvie Blanc | Editor |
Production | Jochen D. Girsch | Assistant Unit Manager |
Writing | Michel Foucault | Book |
Lighting | Joël David | Electrician |
Writing | René Allio | Screenplay |
Directing | Gérard Mordillat | Assistant Director |
Directing | Nicolas Philibert | Assistant Director |
Production | Fanny Berchaux | Consulting Producer |
Production | Michelle Plaa | Production Manager |
Directing | Marie-Hélène Quinton | Script Supervisor |
Production | René Féret | Delegated Producer |
Production | Bernard Bouix | Unit Manager |
Lighting | Alain Grestau | Electrician |
Sound | Jacques Dufour | Sound Mixer |
Writing | Jean Jourdheuil | Screenplay |
Art | Paul Allio | Props |
Writing | Pascal Bonitzer | Screenplay |
Writing | Serge Toubiana | Screenplay |
Crew | Michel Thiriet | Cinematography |
Camera | Philippe Barrier | Still Photographer |
Production | Ginette Tomasel | Production Secretary |
Crew | Robert Alazraki | Cinematography |
Crew | Nurith Aviv | Cinematography |
Crew | François Nadal | Special Effects |
Sound | Pierre Gamet | Sound |
Sound | Patrice Noïa | Sound Assistant |
Camera | Guy Canu | Key Grip |
Costume & Make-Up | Christine Laurent | Costume Design |