| Dossier 51 | |
|---|---|
| Directed by | Michel Deville |
| Produced by | Philippe Dussart |
| Written by | Michel Deville Gilles Perrault |
| Starring | Françoise Béliard |
| Cinematography | Claude Lecomte |
| Editing by | Raymonde Guyot |
| Release date(s) | 30 August 1978 |
| Running time | 108 minutes |
| Country | France |
| Language | French |
Dossier 51 (French: Le dossier 51) is a novel by Gilles Perrault. In 1978 it was made into a French film, directed by Michel Deville. Deville and Perrault won a César Award for Best Writing for their adaptation. The film was screened in the Un Certain Regard section at the 1978 Cannes Film Festival.[1]
Contents |
A secret organization (presumably a foreign intelligence service though this is never made clear) attempts to coerce a French diplomat into working for them.
The book resembles a dossier (file) containing notes, memos, wiretap transcripts, expense reports and interoffice correspondence (including administrative details, even some bickering) written in various personal styles. Every department in the organization is identified by a Greek or Roman god: Jupiter, Mercury, Esculape, Mars, etc. The targets of their investigations have their names replaced by numbers: 51 for the target, 52 for his wife, and so on, further dehumanizing the proceedings.
A psychoanalysis of the target is conducted, people near him are influenced. Ultimately it is established that the target may be a closet homosexual. A sexual encounter with another man is set up in order to create basis for blackmail. Shortly after that successful sexual encounter, the target is killed in a single car accident - possibly suicide. The book/dossier concludes with an irrelevant administrative memo, there is no remorse whatsoever about the tragic consequences of the investigation.
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