C'est un mystere!
November 22, 2011 10:46 PM   Subscribe

This is a long shot, but my SO is trying to identify a film he saw 15-20 years ago, in France, that he would love to re-watch. Unfortunately, he's forgotten the title. The film may be French, but we're not 100% sure. He doesn't remember any famous actors starring. Can anyone help? Plot inside...

The action: A guy parks his car in front of a small wooden house/chalet that belongs to a couple. it. They're hospitable and offer him a drink/meal. He doesn't talk much at all - it's very awkward. The more the story progresses, the tenser it becomes: caused by the fact that he doesn't leave. The longer he stays the weirder it gets - why is he there, what does he want? He remains tight-lipped but stationary. The couple struggle with how to tell him to go.

He doesn't remember the ending.... if anyone can identify this film it'll be a miracle, but hey, it's worth a shot.

Thanks in advance for any help or tips you might have!
posted by everydayanewday to Media & Arts (10 answers total)
 
Could be one of my favorite British films, The Shout. It definitely would be more likely to be seen in France, as the director is more popular there. I would say 5% chance.
posted by hamsterdam at 12:04 AM on November 23, 2011


IMDB also has plot categories you can use to try to pick out the movie. The Shout is on there under "Unwanted Houseguest." You could try some other keywords.
posted by hamsterdam at 12:11 AM on November 23, 2011


Possibly not old enough, but maybe the French thriller Harry, He's Here to Help (2000)? It's about a family, though, not a couple.
posted by jonathanbell at 1:39 AM on November 23, 2011 [1 favorite]


Harry, He's Here To Help, is also known as With a Friend Like Harry, but the husband meets Harry at a gas station initially (it's a great movie, not sure it's the right one though).
posted by biscotti at 5:30 AM on November 23, 2011


I also think it sounds like "With a Friend Like Harry"
posted by Jason and Laszlo at 5:42 AM on November 23, 2011




Your description reminds me of Jean-Pierre Melville's Le Silence de la mer, but that probably isn't it since the film was made in 1949 and you don't mention the film your husband saw being an older one. Melville is beloved by critics though, so maybe your mystery film might have been compared to it in reviews?
posted by bubukaba at 1:12 PM on November 23, 2011


Response by poster: Ach, it's not any of these so far I'm afraid, but thank you everyone for your input (some of them sound so close it's disappointing!). Will keep looking...
posted by everydayanewday at 5:24 PM on November 23, 2011


Did your SO watch it on TV or in the theatre? In the latter case, was it a recent release or a re-relase of an older movie?
posted by elgilito at 1:32 PM on November 24, 2011


Response by poster: It was on TV, don't think it was a re-release (though he can't be 100% about that, argh).
posted by everydayanewday at 1:54 PM on November 24, 2011


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