France société anonyme (1974)

Director:

Alain Corneau

Writers:

Jean-Claude Carrière (writer)
Alain Corneau (writer)

Release Date:

5 June 1974 (France)

Plot:

Cast

Michel Bouquet	...	Le Français
Allyn Ann McLerie	...	L'Américaine
Roland Dubillard	...	Albert, le tueur
Joel Barcellos	...	Le Brésilien
Michel Vitold	...	Le fourgueur
Yves Afonso	...	L'homme de main du fourgueur
Marcel Imhoff	...	Sauboc
Ann Zacharias	...	La fille de l'Américaine
Georges Staquet	...	Le petit nerveux
Daniel Ceccaldi	...	Michel, l'homme du gouvernement
Francis Blanche	...	Pierre, le financier pervers
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Frédérique Barral
Claudine Beccarie	...	L'actrice du film publicitaire
Roland Bertin
Philippe Clévenot
Gérard Desarthe	...	Le toxicomane idéologue
Pauline Larrieu
Pierre Maguelon
Jacques Rispal

Also Known As:

France Inc. (International: English title)
French Anonymity Society (International: English title)

Country:

France

Language:

French

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

France:-16

Company:

Albina Productions S.a.r.l.

Corneau's bad boy debut owes more to Godard then Tavernier

Alain Corneau became famous for his tight and realistic crime films and precise historical chronicles even though many of his features actually tackle other subjects. His debut, translated to English as 'France Inc.' is a Godardian excursion in the world of high-class drug dealers who coexist in the same universe as heads of state and legal businessmen. One day, the heads of France decide that it would be smart to legalize drugs and suddenly the whole drug trafficking world realizes that the entire dope business was an ideological agenda, and that when state starts controlling the dope business, you won't know what you're actually taking.

This plot seems more intriguing than it is presented in Corneau's film itself. The whole storyline is sacrificed to auteur's rude and openly critical spoof of the social environment. But as the lampooning of society goes, in Corneau's case, it also spoofs the film's narrative structure. So, while laughing at the world, Cornnau laughs at the typical grammar of realistic cinema dedicated to presenting that world. This option would be legitimate, had Corneau found the way to actually act and direct smarter then the old guys who invented the damn movie grammar. Sadly, he fails to be smarter then them, so in the end, he wind up as a barely competent debutant whose ironic discourse isn't supported by credibility.

This debut is thus pretty unique in Corneau's filmography and up until 2003. in his opus you could feel that he learned a few lessons about superiority in this one. If you liked this film, then Zulawski's 'L'Amour Braque' is a must-see for you. I guess even Corneau was aiming at such an effort!