I, PIERRE RIVIÈRE
by René Allio
synopsis
Based on documents compiled by leading French philosopher Michel Foucault, this unique and original film charts the gruesome events which took place in a Normandy village in 1835, when a young man, Pierre Rivière, murdered his mother, sister and brother before fleeing to the countryside. With a cast made up of real-life villagers from the area where the events took place, the detailed re-enactments and careful attention to the gestures of their ancestors serve to create an intense and sometimes disturbing atmosphere of hyper-realism. Details of the crime and of the trial that followed are told from varied perspectives, including the written confession of Pierre himself, and form a rich and complex narrative that interrogates the concepts of "truth" and "history".
international title: | I, Pierre Rivière, Having Slaughtered My Mother, Sister and Brother... |
original title: | Moi, Pierre Rivière, ayant égorgé ma mère, ma soeur et mon frère... |
country: | France |
year: | 1976 |
genre: | fiction |
directed by: | René Allio |
film run: | 130' |
release date: | FR 27/10/1976, DE 06/1977, PT 22/04/1981, FI 14/06/2008 |
screenplay: | Pascal Bonitzer, Jean Jourdheuil, Serge Toubiana |
cast: | Claude Hébert, Jacqueline Millière, Joseph Leportier |
cinematography by: | Robert Alazraki, Nurith Aviv, Michel Thiriet |
film editing: | Sylvie Blanc |
costumes designer: | Christine Laurent |