Li'l Quinquin

First of all, this is marketed as a movie, but in fact it was shown as a TV series in France. It is 206 minutes in length, and is best taken at least in two parts -- I had to watch it in three parts. The blurb for it makes it sound like Twin Peaks and/or a murder mystery. In fact, it is neither. David Lynch might like this movie, but mainly because it portrays an affection for small town life that one can see in Twin Peaks. Of course there are quirky characters aplenty, and that is part of the fun. On the one hand we have a sort of unfiltered child's view through Li'l Quinquin and his pals (and boyhood enemies), and then we get the viewpoint of the comical and puzzling pair of investigators, the Captain (or Commandant?) and his Lt. Carpentier. The evidence that can be found for the initial murder are illusive and seemingly impossible. It may well be that this TV series will be continued, but just as with Twin Peaks, the point of the story seems to be the characters and not the solving of a murder. If one can be satisfied with a slow, leisurely and somewhat twisted look at a modern small town in France, with its cast of imperfect, often virulently racist and contentious citizens (the Captain, or Sheriff is both derided and referred to as "The Fog," for his peculiar ways), juxtaposed with the serene peace, frustration, and boundless enthusiasm of the children, then this is a very enjoyable film/TV series. I found in the end I had escaped to another part of the world, and sometimes that's just what I need.

it was a satirical dvd.

Thoroughly entertaining and extremely frustrating is how Lil Quinquin ended up being for me. If you search the internet you will find a lot of fancy reviews that try and analyze, philosophy and compare this to Twin Peaks and True Detectives. Believe me when I say that these comparison are the farthest from the truth. Just because you have two detectives riding around in car trying to solve multiple murders doesn't make this a True Detective clone as well as having a town with quirky characters doesn't make it a Twin Peaks clone. The tone, plots and execution of these two series are completely different then Lil Quinquin. The set up is that a cow has been found dead in a concrete pit and they end up finding body parts inside the cow. The detective starts his investigation and as the 3 1/2 hour story unfolds, more and more bodies start to pile up. This is the main plot along with kind of a subplot about a boy, Lil Quinquin, and his girl friend who just started summer vacation. You follow their exploits and adventures as they get involved to some extend in the investigation plus doing what kids do in the summer. I have to admit I really like these two kids. They were interesting characters and they did a great job acting. You could also see the love they had for each other at such a young age. They really played off each other well and I give the director credit for finding two kid actors who could do that. The detective is the funniest and most entertaining part of the film. It's obvious that the director wanted to do a Inspector Clouseau type being very serious with a bumbling idiocy to him. It's not as over the top and crazy as Peter Sellers was, but you can tell. It is also true that some of the other characters are quirky in some ways but it's mostly done for subtle comedic value. Sometimes it comes off extremely well and other it fails. A good example of failing is during the funeral for the first woman they find murdered. There are two priest conducting the service and for some reason the director thought it would be funny to have these two act like bumbling idiots. They actually turn it into a sort of a Three Stooges routine but not quite as crazy. It just doesn't work and seems ludicrous and out of place to see priest acting like this at a funeral especially when this is a comedy drama and not a full on slap stick film. Also, there seems to be a running gag of mentally and physically disabled people in this town, including Lil Quinquin and the detective. I'm not really sure what the point was with this other then comedic value, though I'm sure some people might find it exploiting and tasteless. It just seems odd to me, yet it was pretty entertaining to watch these people as well. So now we come to what frustrated me about this film. The ending....Stop reading if you don't want spoilers......... So you have this 3 1/2 hour murder mystery with a handful of people that get murdered and the clues start coming together over the story. You have your suspects and perhaps there is one in particular that has a motive and could be the killer, which is Lil Quinquins father. However, you think the thing is going to be solved and BAM....it ends.... No resolution.. No mystery solved... 3 1/2 hours the viewer spent investing in this story, the characters and the murders and the director ends it while the detective is still investigating. I find this a total slap in the face of the audience. I find it a joke that is played on us the viewers. I just can't understand why you would end a murder mystery like that. Can you imagine getting into a great gothic murder mystery novel and the last few pages had been ripped out. One possible explanation is that I read that this was actually a series in France and possible it was going to be renewed for a second run. If that's the case, perhaps we will get a ending revealing the killer and his motive but I have a feeling this was a one time deal and this is how the director decided to end it. Such a good film with a crappy ending and that's very frustrating..

The best movie I saw in 2014! MISS JULIE comes in second. BETTER ANGELS third. WINTER SLEEP fourth.

What the movie has going for it is the absurd. Really weird character, played by excellent actors. The plot is just horrible, without any discernible reason or logic. The murders never get solved. There is no rhyme or reason. The movie loves just showing static scenes for ever and ever - the same content could easily have fitted in a 40 minutes sequence vs. 3 and a half mind numbing hours. The only reason we kept watching was to find out who dunnit and if there would be any reason to it after all. Neither gets answered, the movie just ends. Avoid at all costs.

Masterpiece.

I first saw this on MUBI and had to own it. The writing is oddbeat, the performances exceptional, and how funny is the policeman, played by none other than an ex-gardener who would not learn his lines, so frequently was being fed them through an earpiece by the director? Honestly, if you like any non-conforming dramas then this is one for you. I've seen complaints about the ending but for me it was the only possible solution- I cannot honestly think of any other possible resolution to the series/film.

This has some very funny imagery and I enjoyed a lot of it. It went on too long for me and I thought the ending sucked. Made me think wtf. Maybe it’s just me.

Un incontournable pour les Ch'tis!