Watch Identité judiciaire (1951)

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Identité judiciaire (1951)
French Film, Crime, Thriller
English title: Paris Vice Squad

Official Selection, Nominee: Grand Prix

Commissioner Basquier tries to unmask the sadist who assaulted several women in Paris. One of them committed suicide after being drugged with curare…

Although there's no Inspector Maigret-type character here, this film is like a Simenon crime novel come to life on the screen. The film does not feautre gunfights, wild car chases, or exotic locales. Instead, it features some hard-working, unglamourous French police officers working on a case step-by-step, slowly, carefully. Each "shady" character has an interesting story and each witness has some kind of personal agenda. The police officials are not supermen or Bogart-like; they are office-based men who are professionals. In the US, the film was redubbed, changing character names, although I haven't viewed the French original, so I don't know if plot elements were changed. It was also released as an exploitation film, which is really a stretch. There is a white slavery element to the plot, but it's not sexy at all and there are NO scantilly clad women anywhere to be seen. Anyone taken in by that advertising angle had better like routine police dramas, or he will be let down! Overall, an interesting police detection drama, but no cheesecake and definitely not "shocking" or "daring" as advertised on the risque poster used to promote the film originally! More on Wikipedia or Mubi

Cannes Film Festival, 1951- Nominee: Grand Prix 

Full Film (No English subtitle)