Mort parmi les vivants

An interesting film standing between two worlds and showing us a dual face. The first world includes private producers of the 1st Republic and the Protectorate, a weak economic background, films made on the fly in a few shooting days, and a theme that was a bet on the right emotions in a small market and promised a quick return on investment. The second world belongs to nationalized cinema, where ambitious projects are created thanks to state support, focusing on a more demanding or minority audience, and dealing with serious topics. By its theme, A Dead Man Among the Living falls into the genre of psychological drama rather than a typical crime film. The film addresses questions of guilt, responsibility, and public opinion, which can quickly take stances and just as quickly change them, susceptible to manipulation and capable of being herd-like and cruelly unjust. The execution, however, is still typical of the First Republic era, and even the presence of the usually quality actor Karel Höger didn't convince me to give it more than 3 stars. The screenplay does not avoid having sentimental and melodramatic elements and culminates in a typically moralistic happy ending. Overall impression: 60%. (25/09/2014)