Detective

Détective

A key transitional work, Détective marked Godard’s re-engagement with more accessible narrative forms after his experimental Dziga Vertov Group period. A noir-inflected ensemble piece, the film interweaves multiple pulpy storylines inside a fading Paris hotel: a detective (Laurent Terzieff) and his nephew (Jean-Pierre Léaud) investigate a two-year-old murder, while a boxing manager (Johnny Hallyday) struggles to repay debts to a couple (Claude Brasseur, Nathalie Baye) and the Mafia. Détective explores the tropes of the crime movie through Godard’s playful, self-reflexive lens, culminating in a chaotic convergence of its intersecting plots.

This film is part of the Truth, 24 Times Per Second: The Films of Jean-Luc Godard selection on IFI@Home.