Os Amantes do Tejo

The beginning of the film ,after a rather ludicrous prologue ,is rather dull.The director ,Henri Verneuil,who is naturally despised (often unfairly) by the "true" connoisseurs of the French cinema (that is to say the N.V. buffs)seems more interested in filming the beautiful landscapes of Portugal and Lisbon or Amalia Rodriguez's Fado.

Actually,the movie grows on you;it is based on a novel by Joseph Kessel ,but it recalls Georges Simenon's psychological suspense.The tortoise pace of the first third is necessary to introduce the three characters : the man (Daniel Gélin)committed a crime of passion ;the woman (Françoise Arnoul) may or may not be responsible for the death of her husband ,killed in a car crash;the private eye (Trevor Howard ,whose French was absolutely perfect:hats off!)plays cat and mouse with both of them: he was hired by the lady's wealthy family-in -law to find pieces of evidence which would prove she's a murderess.His method,which predates that of Colombo is very subtle.

All in all,this is another good movie by Henri Verneuil,the ending of which is not unlike that of "Pepe Le Moko" ,a standard reference work.

NB:Jacques Moulière ,who portrays the little boy,became a pop singer in the sixties (as Jacky Moulière) but his career was never really successful.