THE THREAD

THREE AND A HALF STARS A defence lawyer is convinced his client is innocent. And he might be right.

DRAMA FRANCE French #THETHREAD Starring Daniel Auteuil, Grégory Gadebois

THE THREAD takes the true crime formula and turns the volume way down. This isn’t a lurid, procedural bloodbath. Instead the violence of murder stays implied and, apart from one photo, offscreen with director-star Daniel Auteuil guiding the pace like a Sunday afternoon stroll.

The title could refer to the scrap of cloth found on the victim, or the fragile line of logic in a court case - tug it hard enough and the whole thing unravels. Nicolas Milik (Grégory Gadebois) is a weary father of five and devoted husband to his alcoholic wife. When she’s found dead, suspicion falls on Milik (it’s always the husband), with his best friend drawn in as an alleged accomplice. Enter principled lawyer Maître Monier (Auteuil), who takes the case with the conviction his client is innocent, only to find the truth is harder to pin down than expected.

This is a film of small movements. The court exchanges are cool rather than combative, and even Monier’s private discussions with his lawyer partner feel low-stakes - until they’re not. Auteuil’s performance is calm to the point of detachment, which suits the tone but robs the middle act of urgency. We’re nudged first toward believing the prosecution, then toward the defence, and then back again. The thin case creates a legal tug-of-war where both sides might be right, or wrong. Lock up an innocent man or set a murderer free.

For the most part, THE THREAD coasts along. It’s not dull, but it rarely grabs you by the collar. Then, just when you think the verdict has settled everything, the film snaps into sharp focus. A quiet, tense conversation between Monier and Milik reframes everything in a flash, followed by a final exchange that leaves a lingering, uncomfortable aftertaste. You walk out of the cinema not shocked exactly, but feeling as if you were somehow complicit in something very nasty.

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