Lee Eisenberg Prior to watching "L'Homme qu'on aimait trop" ("In the Name of My Daughter" in English), I had never heard of Agnès Le Roux. The movie identifies that it's based on the story but some things are changed. In addition to the basic plot, I interpreted the movie as an overall look at an unfortunate trend that came about in the 1970s: the eclipsing of local businesses by bigger ones. In most cases it was chain stores that drove out the small ones, but in this case a mafia guy seeks to buy the casino.I wouldn't call the movie a masterpiece, but it does a good job showing the breakdown of the mother-daughter relationship after the daughter betrays the mother. It's a truly depressing story. I guess that the French version of "Stand by Me" functions as deliberate irony.As expected, Catherine Deneuve carries the movie as the distraught mother. Adèle Haenel also turns in a good performance as the daughter. I recommend the movie. I suppose that, like the story of the West Memphis Three, this might be a case that never truly gets solved.

Lorace Dem This is basically the French version of a lifetime made for TV movie, about a Robert Durst style case. It is however not anywhere close to the caliber of 'All Good Things,' since the main character in this film is the mother, not the actual murder victim or the alleged killer. And the film doesn't attempt to present a theory of how the murder happened, it just leaves it in the dark, exchanges it for pathetic scenes of Catherine Denevue with aging makeup, hobbling around a barren apartment talking about the loss of her daughter.I was unaware of this when I began watching the film, and found the events incomprehensible. The motives of the characters, be they the mother, daughter, or their attorney seemed quite murky to me. My initial reaction was to like Maurice, and become confused when his behavior started to change. The character on screen was poorly written and acted. We are apparently supposed to believe that everything Maurice did was a criminal, sociopathic act, including his desire to move up in the world and all of his professional decisions.Was Renée Le Roux actually good or bad at running the casino? The film gives us no clues whatsoever but insists that she is either way the real victim/martyr in this story. She denies her daughter an inheritance, and their relationship ends badly. I didn't really sympathize with her at all, she was a controlling parent, trying to run her adult daughter's life, but now we are supposed to view that as perfectly o.k. given the tepid courtroom soap opera that this story ends in.

Paul Allaer "In The Name of My Daughter" (2014 release from France, original title "L'homme qu'on aimait trop" or "The man people loved too much"; 116 min.) brings the story of Agnes Le Roux, a twenty-something young woman. As the movie opens, we are in the mid/late 70s and we see Agnes arriving at the Nice airport and being picked up by Maurice, a guy who works for/with Agnes' mother, Renee. Renee runs one of the many casinos that are at the French Riviera, but the casino is not doing well. Meanwhile we see Agnes and Maurice hitting it off, even though Maurice is married and has a young son, and admittedly also has other mistresses. On top of that, Maurice has a falling out with Renee. To tell you more would spoil your viewing experience, you'll just have to see for yourself how it all plays out.Couple of comments: first, I knew next to nothing about the movie's plot or story line when I went to see it, and as a result, the movie for me became a guessing game as to which direction this movie would take or what this movie was about in the first place: is it about the strained mother-daughter relationship? or about the possible takeover of the casino by the Mafioso? or about the potential romance between Maurice and Agnes? The Big Reveal comes only 20 minutes before the end, and the of course it all makes sense. But by then my patience had been severely tested, I must admit. Second, as the movie opens, it reminds us that "this is a work of fiction based on real-life facts". What that means to me is that the very general theme or story line of the movie is real, but plenty of 'artistic licenses' have been made as to the details of the movie. Third, if you wonder on what basis I'd go see a movie I know next to nothing about, my answer is: it stars Catherine Deneuve (as Renee). That in and of itself is good enough for me to check out a movie. As it happens, there are other worthwhile performances in this movie, most notably Guillaume Canet as Maurice, but Adele Haenel as Agnes does quite well too. Bottom line: this movie is quite good, although it takes too long to give us the Big Reveal which explains why we have been watching the previous 90+ min.This movie showed up without any hype or advertising at my local art-house theater here in Cincinnati this weekend and I went to see it right away. The Sunday matinée screening where I saw this at was surprisingly well attended. I bet you that it is Catherine Deneuve's name that attracts most people to this movie (it certainly did for me). If you are in the mood for a decent French movie that brings quality acting performances, you might want to check out "In the Name of My Daughter", be it in the theater, or eventually on VOD or DVD/Blu-ray.

David Ferguson Greetings again from the darkness. The best French films excel at showing how relationships and personality traits can get intertwined to create a big mess where only a small blip once existed. Based on the book by Renee LeRoux, this film from decorated director Andre Techine is self-described "fiction based on real events" and follows the events that began in 1976, and the fallout over a murder-mystery during the next thirty plus years.Catherine Deneuve plays Renee LeRoux, the owner of a casino in Nice, and mother to Agnes (Adele Haenel). Agnes returns home from Africa after a split from her husband. She is strong-willed and free-spirited, and intent on cashing out her share of the casino to open her own little shop.Mother and daughter are tormented by their lack of a close relationship, and this frustration intensifies due to the pressure on Mom's casino business applied by local mobster Fratoni (Jean Corso), and even moreso thanks to the romantic relationship that brews between Mom's trusted business adviser Maurice Agnelet (Guillaume Canet) and the much younger Agnes.Maurice is a well-known (and admitted) Lothario and his business savvy manages to maneuver Agnes into betraying her mother at a crucial time. This betrayal leaves both Maurice and Agnes with a substantial financial gain, while Mom loses her casino. Agnes devolves into obsessed-lover and stalker, while Maurice is content to continue playing the field and enjoy his riches. Soon enough, Agnes disappears without a trace, and of course her mother suspects Maurice has killed her. With no body and no evidence, there can be no murder charges, and this sets Renee on a lifelong mission of proving him guilty.It's nice to see Ms. Deneuve take on this role, and the best scenes involve her interactions with Ms. Haenel and Mr. Canet (who wrote and directed the 2006 gem Tell No One). The interactions between these characters is fascinating to watch, and provides some insight to the not-always-positive side of human beings. It's also a sign of the times as cigarette smoke is present (sometimes in mass quantities) in most every scene, and the French version of "Stand By Me" fits perfectly in a rare moment that lacks tension. The final act provides quite a statement on the justice system in France, though one hates to jump to conclusions based on a few minutes of a movie.