In 1951, Sacha Guitry wrote and directed "La Poison" (oddly, he didn't star in the film). I have never seen the film but noticed that Amazon is selling the Blu-Ray version--which I'll have to buy. Why? Because I enjoyed the remake, "A Crime in Paradise", so much--I'd really like to be able to compare it to the original.As for "A Crime in Paradise", this film isn't exactly a comedy--though it has a dark, slightly comic tone. In many ways it's reminiscent of the wonderful Charles Laughton film, "The Suspect", as both films are about very nice men who have wives who are Satan!! In both cases, the viewer is in the odd position of WANTING to see her killed--and in a cute twist, so did the entire village in this film!! As I said, however, it isn't exactly a comedy--more a sweet little character study that worked GREAT because of the fine performance by Jacques Villeret. Because of this and the wonderful story, I highly recommend it and feel that the current relatively low rating isn't to be trusted.By the way, as a non-Frenchman, I was shocked that apparently in order to buy poison you go to a pharmacy! And, you need to sign for it to make sure they keep track of the mole killer. I think the latter is a very good idea but selling deadly poisons at a pharmacy?! Odd.

If you know Sacha Guitry's immortal "Le Poison", this movie may seem a little disconcerting to you. It is a fairly faithful retelling of Guitry's astonishingly cynical story, but with many of the sharp corners rounded. Not a betrayal of the original, but a different, typically Jean Becker, way of telling the same story. The wife is far more developed as a character, and we are given reasons to feel sorry for her on occasion. Josiane Balasko, who plays the part, is also a first-rate actress. Braconnier, played by the equally gifted actor Jacques Villeret, is not as aggressive as Michel Simon's character; he borders on the timid. Humanity as Jean Becker sees it, in other words, and not how Sacha Guitry saw it.If you don't know Guitry's film, you can enjoy this for what it is, a funny and yet warm comedy. If you do know Guitry's film, the écart between the two will bring out nicely what was typical of/unique to Guitry.A strong recommendation for both movies.

It's a french film, located in the french countryside, with that unique french feeling that stays right between drama and humor: one hour and a half that run like fresh water. Not a chef-d'oeuvre, but really pleasant. One thing to appreciate is that characters are as natural as it is in everyday life, and the plot seems to come out of a province's newspaper as well. 7 out of 10.

If you want to have a look at life in the French countryside in the seventies, this movie is for you. It's a good illustration of this forgotten world during which everything looked so naive and pain. The film is a remake of a French movie classic. It looks anachronistic compared to sophisticated French movies such as "Le pacte des loups". Its subject, its cast (most of the actors comes back from the seventies and the eighties...), its music by Pierre Bachelet, its direction... Everything looks out of time. It may be pleasant, but at the same time a useless effort to revive a movie genre which belongs to the past and which was so well made at the time. Funny, but useless.