Caché (2005)

User Rating:

7.2/10   

Director:

Michael Haneke

Writer:

Michael Haneke (screenplay)

Release Date:

5 October 2005 (France)

Genre:

Drama | Mystery | Thriller

Plot:

A married couple is terrorized by a series of videotapes planted on its front porch that may be the direct result from an event from years ago.

Plot Keywords:

Drawing | Friend | Police | Videotape | Surveillance

Awards:

21 wins & 22 nominations

Cast

Daniel Auteuil	...	Georges Laurent
Juliette Binoche	...	Anne Laurent
Maurice Bénichou	...	Majid
Annie Girardot	...	Georges's Mom
Bernard Le Coq	...	Georges's Editor-In-Chief
Walid Afkir	...	Majid's Son
Lester Makedonsky	...	Pierrot Laurent
Daniel Duval	...	Pierre
Nathalie Richard	...	Mathilde
Denis Podalydès	...	Yvon
Aïssa Maïga	...	Chantal
Caroline Baehr	...	Nurse
Christian Benedetti	...	Georges's Father
Philippe Besson	...	TV Guest
Loic Brabant	...	Police Officer No. 2 (as Loïc Brabant)

Also Known As:

Hidden (International: English title) (UK)
Niente da nascondere (Italy)

MPAA:

Rated R for brief strong violence.

Runtime:

117 min

Country:

France | Austria | Germany | Italy | USA

Language:

French

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.78 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital | DTS

Certification:

Switzerland:16 (canton of Geneva) | Switzerland:16 (canton of Vaud) | Sweden:15 | Brazil:16 | UK:15 | Czech Republic:15 | Norway:15 | Ireland:16 | Portugal:M/16 | Finland:K-15 | Canada:14A (Ontario) | Netherlands:16 | Singapore:NC-16 | Germany:12 | Malaysia:(Banned) | Argentina:13 | Japan:PG-12 | Australia:MA | Hungary:16 | Hong Kong:IIB | Italy:T | Iceland:16 | South Korea:15 | New Zealand:R16 | USA:R

Filming Locations:

Paris, France

Company:

Les Films du Losange

Trivia:

In Pierrot's bedroom there are movie posters for Lost in Space (1998), The Matrix Reloaded (2003), The Chronicles of Riddick (2004), Van Helsing (2004) and In Hell (2003).

Goofs:

Continuity: In the opening scene we see the Laurent residence from a stationary camera. Three roses are visible in a window box on the left. In the same setting late in the film after much passage of time, the roses are unchanged and in the same positions.

Movie Connections:

References Lost Highway (1997)

It's not Paranoia, if they are watching you

Greetings again from the darkness. French films have a tradition of being filmed intimately, almost in a voyeuristic manner. Writer/Director Michael Haneke takes it a step further with a story about a family being watched. The idea is pretty creepy as Daniel Auteuil and Juliette Binoche have videos dropped on their doorstep showing the almost total nonaction occurring right outside their front door. This puts quite a strain on their already passionless relationship.

The joy of a suspense story is assembling the clues and deciding what is and what is not vital to solving the mystery. Haneke does an admirable job of tossing clues and false trails on the viewer. The general consensus seems to be that if you somehow miss the last shot of the film, you can't solve it. In fact, that final shot merely reinforces what we have already been shown.

The blending of voyeurism, terrorism and revenge causes much stress for the two leads. Auteuil is solid in his role, but the lovely Ms. Binoche really shines in her much more emphatic turn as the wife and mother who begins to unravel as the men in her life seem to turn on her. Watching for details such as the TV newscasts, facial expressions and the timing of the appearance and disappearance of key characters will easily allow the viewer to solve the mystery, but it does not take away from the tension the situation creates.

This is a pretty solid thriller, but not in the class of Francois Ozon's "Swimming Pool" from a couple of years ago. Of course the topicality of technology makes "Cache" a bit more relevant at the moment.