Une part d'ombre (2018)
Directed by Samuel Tilman

Film Review

The zone of uncertainty surrounding a murder investigation crystallises into a noxious web of intrigue and suspicion in this tense psychological drama, the first fictional feature from Belgian filmmaker Samuel Tilman.  Before giving the crime-thriller genre a much needed shot in the arm with Une part d'ombre, Tilman has produced a number of films - notably Joachim Lafosse's 2006 film Ça rend heureux, which he also co-scripted - and made a few short films, including the prize-winning Nuit blanche (2011).  Whilst his first feature is not without some shortcomings, it has enough flair and originality to make us think that Tilman is a director to watch out for.

In a similar vein to Audrey Diwan's recent Mais vous êtes fous (2019), Une part d'ombre combines elements of family drama and thriller and depicts the gradual breakdown in the trust between a husband and wife when a dark secret comes between them.  Written with more imaginative flair, Tilman's is the more convincing of the two films, although it also suffers from a narrative that is too linearly projected and predictable.  As in Diwan's film, a pedestrian screenplay is redeemed by the utterly compelling performances from the two lead actors, who enact a traumatic game of mutual identity probing with astonishing conviction.

Fabrizio Rongione is an inspired choice for the lead role of David, the devoted family man who soon becomes a murder suspect through some unwitting (or possibly conscious) attempts to incriminate himself.  Rongione is most familiar for his work with the Dardenne brothers - L'Enfant (2005), Le Silence de Lorna (2008) - but his doggedly authentic style of acting is equally suited to a lowkey genre film, as this film amply demonstrates.  In a performance of remarkable subtlety, the actor succeeds in arousing both our sympathy and our anxieties, and by the mid-point we cannot be sure whether he is a complete innocent playing a perverse game or a dangerous killer deliberately intent on obfuscating matters.  The question we are constantly prompted to ask ourselves is: "Can this man really be capable of murder?"  The answer is a very long time coming.

The effect of this torturous uncertainty is most keenly revealed in the nuanced performance of the film's lead actress Natacha Régnier, who plays the suspected man's wife with no less conviction than her co-star.  It is agonising to watch as she succumbs to the haze of suspicion that slowly infects every one of David's acquaintances, causing her to lose faith in her husband and then to see him as a threat to both herself and their children.  It's incredible how long the film manages to keep up the tension and intrigue without becoming dull and repetitive.  Admittedly, the plot does lack coherence and credibility in a few scenes, but thanks to its assured direction and intense central performances it has no difficulty grabbing our attention and holding on to it right until the very end.

Film Synopsis

David is a family man who has everything he could ask for, including a devoted wife Julie and two children he adores.  So far he has led an ordinary existence and there is no sign of the dramatic turn of events that are about to overtake him and his family as they return home after their holidays.  It seems a woman's corpse has been found in a solitary spot in the Vosges mountains and the police are on the trail of her killer.  David is apprehended and called in by the police for routine questioning as a possible witness to the murder.  But as the interrogation proceeds it becomes apparent that David may know more about the killing than he pretends.  Little by little, the cloud of suspicion around him spreads and contaminates his lawyer, his friends, even his family.  Is it possible that David is the killer...?