ONLY THE ANIMALS/SEULS LES BETES, France, 2019. Starring Denis Menochet, Laure Calamy, Damien Bonnard, Nadia Tereszkiewicz. Directed by Dominik Moll. 117 minutes. Rated M (Mature themes, violence, sex, nudity and coarse language).
A French drama, murder mystery set in Ivory Coast and France. Quite an enigmatic title. Does it apply to the characters or to human behaviour? Whatever the meaning of the title, this is a murder mystery thriller with more than one twist.
While the main settings are in France, there is a prologue set in Abidjan, Ivory Coast. A young man carries a goat on his shoulders, walks along a corridor, and asks to see a character called Papa Sanou. And then, suddenly, we are in France for more than an hour’s running time – and forgetting all about Ivory Coast.
The film is structured in three sections, each named after a woman. The first is Alice, the wife of a farmer, Michel, working in insurance, unfaithful to her husband, especially with a neighbour, Joseph, who suffers mental illness problems. So far, so ordinary. However, there is news of the disappearance of a woman and a fear that she is murdered. Each of the characters introduced in this section have some connection to the woman, some serious, some tenuous.
And then there is a change of attention. The second section is Marion. She is a young woman who works in a diner and is attracted to one of the customers – a mixture of charm and seduction – and they begin an intense sexual relationship. In fact, the older woman is Evelyne, who, we know, will be murdered. And so, the puzzle increases. What has Marion to do with Evelyne’s death? Direct? Indirect?
For the third section, Armandine, we are suddenly back in the Ivory Coast, remembering the opening, wondering how on earth this is all connected with Evelyne, her death, and the other characters we have met.
Actually, this part of the plot is intriguing, an introduction to African scamming by computer, setting up false accounts, setting up false identities, entangling unwitting middle-aged men, setting up infatuations and – of course, getting as much money out of them as they can. The central character here is Armand, who has envied celebrities who have made money with the help of Papa Sanou, believing that there is some kind of supernatural power behind their activity.
The temptation for a reviewer stage is to indulge in some spoilers – but it is best to advise audiences to go and see the film, be surprised at the connections and twists, and discover for themselves the unexpected murderer.
This reviewer, however, has some difficulties with the last 10 minutes of the film – it is probably too much. It might have ended 10 minutes earlier with a freeze frame, enigmatic, leaving the audience to puzzle over what has happened and what will happen. However, the option has been made to go for full explanations, which is satisfying for those who really want to know what does happen. More than might have been expected! And, to cap it all off, with the various ins and outs, the final two minutes offer another unanticipated twist to the plot!
Hi Gloss Films
Released 21 January
Peter Malone MSC is an associate Jesuit Media