Comme un boomerang (1976)
Directed by José Giovanni

Film Review

Alain Delon is perfectly at home in this typically hard-edged crime-thriller which, in common with many policiers directed by José Giovanni, compels us to side with the apparent criminals, who are cast as victims of a ruthless judicial system.  A few years previously, Giovanni and Delon had made a film, Deux hommes dans la ville (1973), which made an eloquent case for the abolition of the death penalty in France. Comme un boomerang is an appropriate title - the director and his lead actor return to make the same case, in a more conventional thriller in which Delon must do all he can to prevent his son from being guillotined for what is obviously manslaughter.

Whilst the plot is somewhat trite and hard to take seriously at times, the film does allow Delon to play a somewhat more sympathetic character than he is known for - not the ice-cold killer or driven detective, but a father driven by the natural human impulse to save his son's life.

From the first dramatic scene to the final nail-biting conclusion, this film grabs the attention. There is an impressive performance from veteran actor Charles Vanel, best known for his part in H.G. Clouzot's Le Salaire de la peur (1953), and a suitably moody score from music maestro Georges Delerue. Whilst it hardly rates as a classic and is let down by some obvious weaknesses on the screenwriting front, Comme un boomerang shows Delon at his best and is one of Giovanni's most compelling films.

Film Synopsis

Whilst under the influence of drugs at a party, the son of a wealthy industrialist accidentally shoots a passing policeman.  This provokes a public outrage and, under arrest, he faces the prospect of a long prison sentence or even the death penalty.  His father, Jacques Batkin, is prepared to do anything to save his son and recruits his best lawyer.  Then Jacques Batkin's criminal past is suddenly unearthed and events take a dramatic turn…