Monsieur Hire

Monsieur Hire (Michel Blanc) is a balding, mousy (literally, in that he keeps mice for pets), middle-aged tailor, who is generally disliked by all (and feels the same towards his neighbors in return.) But one neighbor, in particular, catches his eye: all alone in his apartment each evening, Hire watches his across-the-way neighbor Alice (Sandrine Bonnaire) undress, iron clothes, eat, etc. In short, Monsieur Hire is a voyeur who doesn't just like to watch naked women, but likes to watch everything. When a young girl is murdered nearby, the police begin questioning Hire who, it turns out, served time earlier for indecent exposure. Fairly early then, our perception of Monsieur Hire is that he is lower than whale doo doo at the bottom of the deepest ocean. We also strongly suspect that he is the killer. Based on a Georges Simenon novel, director Patrice Leconte, together with the superb acting of both Blanc and Bonnaire, pulls off a magnificent feat. When Alice catches Monsieur Hire watching her, she is, at first, frightened; later she becomes fascinated. As their strange cat-and-mouse relationship progresses, we do indeed spare a little sympathy for Monsieur Hire, as this twisty psychological thriller demonstrates that things are not necessarily what they seem. Monsieur Hire is that rare film that works successfully on many levels. Mystery buffs will enjoy the labyrinthine plot. Connoisseurs of complex character portraits will find a real gem in Hire. And movie buffs will not miss the inescapable metaphor: we share something in common with Hire, since watching movies is a kind of voyeurism in itself. An award winner in France, Monsieur Hire is a superb, and resonantly disturbing, movie. Highly recommended. (R. Pitman) [DVD Review—Nov. 13, 2007—Kino, 79 min., in French w/English subtitles, not rated, $29.95—Making its first appearance on DVD, 1989's Monsieur Hire sports a nice transfer and includes an interview with director Patrice Leconte (2 min.), a stills gallery, and trailers. Bottom line: despite the small extras package, this is one of Leconte's best and is highly recommended.]