There are two sides to The Crimson Rivers. On the one hand, it has a ludicrous ending and a couple of out-of-place elements. However, the remaining 80% of the movie, which is the journey leading up to the finale, is a total blast, with sheer brilliance in technical filmmaking.
This movie was the French response to popular American thrillers like Seven (1995) and The Silence of the Lambs (1991). Directed by Mathieu Kassovitz, who made the critically acclaimed La Haine (1995), The Crimson Rivers has two storylines. In the first, a Parisian detective, Pierre Niemans (Jean Reno), is investigating the gruesome murder of Remy Callois, a librarian at the University of Guernon, who was discovered bound in the fetal position with his eyes gouged out and his hands severed. The university is the largest employer in the small town of Guernon and wields absolute authority over the locals. It is self-sufficient in terms of water, energy, and healthcare, including a maternity ward.
Niemans learns that the university’s isolated location in the deep valley of the French Alps has resulted in generations of inbreeding among the teachers and staffers. As a result of this inbreeding, many university children developed genetic abnormalities, a trend that has now been reversed, with local children becoming more ill instead. The second storyline revolves around Max Kerkerian (Vincent Cassel), a local police officer in a nearby town named Sarzac, who is investigating the desecrated grave of Judith Herault. She allegedly died in a truck accident, which drove her mother insane. Nieman and Max, who are investigating separate cases, meet while looking for a mutual person of interest, which is when they discover that these cases are connected and decide to work together to solve them. The movie explores the philosophy of Nazi eugenics, which Hitler embraced wholeheartedly.
The police procedural part of the film, in which Niemans investigates the murder, presents some intriguing leads. For example, the autopsy reveals that acid rain was pouring out of the victim’s eye socket, but Niemans finds that no acid rain has fallen in the area in the last 70 years. He enlists the help of Fanny Ferreira (Nadia Fares), the glaciologist who discovered Remy’s body, to travel to the glacier and gather water samples to compare to the acid rain detected during the autopsy. It is a stunningly shot scene in which Niemans and Fanny descend a snowy mountain and reach a glacier cave, where he discovers a second body. After Max and Niemans’ paths converge, the movie becomes compelling and urgent. Max is a talkative, curious guy who rarely receives any response from Niemans, a self-proclaimed lone wolf who doesn’t like talking much and is terrified of dogs. Watching them together will remind you of Morgan Freeman and Brad Pitt in Seven (1995). Speaking of Seven, there is a scene in The Crimson Rivers where Max and Niemans are chasing the murderer, who manages to outsmart them and grabs Niemans’ gun and points at him but doesn’t kill him. The scene is remarkably similar to the one in Seven, where Pitt and Freeman track down the killer and pursue him, and the killer overpowers but does not kill Pitt.
There were a couple of unnecessary elements that the movie could have done without. The first is the Kung Fu scene between Max and a couple of skinheads, whom Max goes to question about the vandalism of the grave, which weirdly appears out of place in the context of the movie. The second was the supernatural angle, where Judith’s mother claims her daughter’s accident is the work of the devil, which felt irrelevant. However, these factors did not hamper the movie as much as the climax did. When it comes to the final reveal of who is responsible for these terrible murders, the conclusion is a total downer. Even for a film made 22 years ago, the surprise is embarrassingly dated, corny, and clichéd. To make matters worse, the CGI in the climactic action scene, right after the reveal, when the avalanche is descending on the characters, is subpar.
Vincent Cassel’s portrayal of a pot-smoking, chatty, and inquisitive police officer is instantly likable. Even though his storyline isn’t as interesting as Nieman’s (he is only looking into a desecrated grave), he succeeds in drawing us into his investigation and making us care about the outcome. Jean Reno does an excellent job as a no-nonsense, eccentric detective, holding the film together and providing a sense of calm amidst the chaos around him. However, his romantic interest in Fanny was another needless element in the movie.
The Crimson Rivers features strong performances, a score reminiscent of John Williams, and visually stunning locales. It will both entertain and frustrate you at the same time.
The Crimson Rivers movie link: IMDB
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