Monsieur Hire

GREAT MOVIES: Patrice Leconte's Monsieur Hire (France, 1989) - How far would you go for love, true love that is? Would you commit murder, assist a murder or hide a murder? Monsieur Hire asks this question and, in the process, uncovers aspects of character which are probably best left hidden. The title character, M.Hire (Michel Blanc), is a quiet, tidy man who runs a small tailoring business. He bothers no one and, in return, is persecuted by his neighbours for his aloofness -- they bang on his door, throw flour over him and whisper under their breath when he walks by. It's true that he seems indifferent to this abuse but this doesn't explain why he endures it. In fact the reason is simple -- Alice (Sandrine Bonnaire). Every night he returns home, cooks a boiled egg, puts on the same piece of music and stands at his window, staring across the alley and into Alice's apartment. She is a young woman and the attraction seems obvious but, somehow, this is more than simple voyeurism. How far would you go for love, true love that is? Would you commit murder, assist a murder or hide a murder? Monsieur Hire asks this question and, in the process, uncovers aspects of character which are probably best left hidden. The title character, M.Hire (Michel Blanc), is a quiet, tidy man who runs a small tailoring business. He bothers no one and, in return, is persecuted by his neighbours for his aloofness -- they bang on his door, throw flour over him and whisper under their breath when he walks by. It's true that he seems indifferent to this abuse but this doesn't explain why he endures it. In fact the reason is simple -- Alice (Sandrine Bonnaire). Every night he returns home, cooks a boiled egg, puts on the same piece of music and stands at his window, staring across the alley and into Alice's apartment. She is a young woman and the attraction seems obvious but, somehow, this is more than simple voyeurism. 1989CANic, 1989NYFF, 1990CES, EFS, EGM. RATING: 9