Nathalie Baye plays the fiancée of a bully (Richard Bohringer in one of his trademark creepy bad guy roles). She is suddenly given the opportunity to start a new life by assuming the identity of a dead woman, and she takes it. But of course it's not going to be that easy...
The choice of Nathalie Baye as the lead is important for the tone of the film. With another actress, say Isabelle Adjani, we would be in completely different territory, questioning the heroine's motives as she settles into her new and immensely wealthy "family". But Baye has such a guileless sweetness, you find yourself rooting for her even when she's sticking a knife in someone's chest. Francis Huster is well cast, too, as the romantic lead whose ambiguous behaviour (has he guessed her secret?) fuels much of the suspense during the middle section of the film.
Despite the corny plot and the melodramatic elements, the film has a very satisfying pace and mood (enhanced by the lovely soundtrack and the glorious Bordeaux setting). It may be a disappointment to fans of the much darker novel but, as Robin Davis explains in his DVD commentary, it was never his intention to make a faithful adaptation or a typical noir thriller. He changed the story because he cared too much about the characters to abandon them without hope.
