Thieves (Les Voleurs)

REVIEW
A luminous and impossibly youthful Deneuve and a gruffily attractive Auteuil are lovers of Côte, a young student in over her head in a scheme that comes to involve murder. Deneuve, a professor of philosophy, and Auteuil, a police inspector, are drawn together in their concern for the young woman, who begins to unravel under the pressure of her destructive associations. The film is at once hyperventilating and elegantly structured, seasoned with staccato dialogue that propels the convoluted plot with wit, awareness and just the right touch of Gaulic pretense. Concisely drawn characters add depth of understanding to the rapidly developed story line; director Téchiné's command of the film is complete and admirable. An intelligent, adult mystery-thriller that makes optimum use of all its components. (French with English subtitles)