The Raven Reviews

I already saw this movie but, since it was ages ago and since it was available on Netflix, I was quite eager to check it out again. Well, following his directorial debut, 'L'assassin habite au 21',  Henri-Georges Clouzot didn't waste any time and delivered another classic film noir only a year later. In fact, the damned thing was so dark, it gave such a negative of French people, that the director was initially banned for life from directing in France after WWII (Fortunately, this ban was lifted a few years later). This ban also had to do with the fact that this movie was released during WWII by Continental Films, a German company. Anyway, because it was so dark, it was actually quite spellbinding to behold, especially for a Frenchman like me. Indeed, the fact that it was made right in the middle of the WWII and that it was dealing with denunciation, something which many French people were guilty of during WWII, made the whole thing even more intriguing to behold. Another funny thing, at least to me, was how Clouzot pretty much destroyed the idyllic idea that living in a small village where everyone pretty much knows everything about everybody might be such a wonderful thing. At least, in a big city, you can enjoy some anonymity, if you choose it. It was also impressive the fact that, even though there were so many characters involved, with only a few lines of dialogue, Clouzot was still able to give each one of them a fairly complex personality. To be honest, the ending did feel rather random but, fortunately, it didn't ruin the whole thing at all. Anyway, to conclude, even though it might not belong to the masterpieces delivered by this great director, it is still a really strong French film noir and it is definitely worth a look, especially if you are interested in Henri-Georges Clouzot's work. 

The French genre of film noir is present here. Amazing!! This will definitely fill the appetite of those interested in such filmmaking styles.