Die untreue Frau

The film captures the reaction of a well-established, calm, exemplary, and capable husband of a beautiful woman, who thought that his marriage was also calm and exemplary, but who was mistaken both in this idea and in the idea that he knows not only his wife but also himself. For we can never know what is happening within a person, even if they appear polite or kind, for example... The reasons for the characters' actions are not easily revealed; their feelings and thoughts are hidden behind a difficult-to-penetrate exterior wall of ingrained behavior, and until the last moment, you cannot guess which emotion will emerge. (17.07.2012)

The antihero is an exemplary virtuous husband, a partner so non-conflicting, reliable, and loyal that his wife has the impression that he has something in common with the number one on a ten euro banknote... which also carries a zero throughout its life. The feeling of boredom of a secure bourgeois lady tempts her to spice up her life with a love affair. However, the feeling of humiliation from the revealed infidelity also means the limit at which the dark corners of the partner's mind are exposed, and the racially serious husband transforms into a cold-blooded avenger on the hunt. The film doesn't belong so much to the crime genre, as it has too simple a plot line and plays its cards too openly from the beginning. Instead, it is much more a psychological drama, a cool and distant study of a man who took a shortcut and bet everything on one card. Chabrol, besides his traditionally refined sense of detail, is also helped by the casting. Stéphane Audran is perfectly cast and for the role of a closed emotionally starved man, the director could not have chosen anyone better than Michel Bouquet. Overall impression: 80%. (14.11.2013)