Fear Over the City
{{Infobox film
| name = Fear Over the City
| image = Peur sur la ville.jpg
| caption = Theatrical release poster
| director = Henri Verneuil
| producer = Jacques Juranville
| writer = Henri Verneuil
Jean Laborde
Francis Veber
| based_on = original story by Verneuil
| narrator =
| starring = Jean-Paul Belmondo
| music = Ennio Morricone
| cinematography = Jean Penzer
| editing = Pierre Gillette
| studio = Cerito Films
Mondial Televisione Film
| distributor = Gaumont Distribution
| released = {{Film date|1975|4|9|France|df=y}}
| runtime = 125 minutes
| country = France
Italy
| language = French
| budget = $2.7 million
}}
Fear Over the City (French: Peur sur la ville{{Cite web|url= http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/peur_sur_la_ville/|title= Peur sur la Ville (Fear Over the City) (The Night Caller) (1975)|accessdate=2012-12-22|publisher=Rotten Tomatoes}}) is a 1975 French crime film directed by Henri Verneuil and starring Jean-Paul Belmondo. It was the first time Belmondo played a police officer.{{cite news|title=A Caller Under the Influence|last=Arnold|first=Gary|newspaper=The Washington Post|date= 25 November 1975|page= B2}}
It was released in the United States and the United Kingdom as The Night Caller.
Plot
Policeman Jean Letellier is under pressure, because the infamous gangster Marcucci escaped from him publicly. Moreover, during the pursuit an innocent bystander was killed by a stray bullet. Letellier is investigated for having fired the deadly bullet.
Before Letellier is cleared, a serial killer begins to murder young women, each time leaving a weird message at the site of crime. He calls himself "Minos", referring to the Divine Comedy. The murderer always declares he had punished his victims for what he considers their impure life style.
While Letellier still has no trace of Minos, he comes across Marcucci's current whereabouts. Just as before, Marcucci tries to escape in a spectacular manner when Letellier confronts him. But this time Marcucci dies in the course of action.
Marcucci's death is no relief for Letellier who is now publicly accused of having neglected the Minos case in favour of settling his personal feud with his late archenemy.
Minos keeps on murdering and leaving provoking hints until Letellier can identify him. The serial killer can only scarcely elude Letellier, who chases him over the roofs of Paris. His next coup is to take hostages in a skyscraper. Letellier decides he has had it and goes airborne. From a flying helicopter he jumps through the window into the flat and puts Minos down.
Cast
- Jean-Paul Belmondo as Jean Letellier
- Charles Denner as Charles Moissac
- Giovanni Cianfriglia as Marcucci
- Adalberto Maria Merli as Minos
- Jean Martin as Inspector Sabin
- Lea Massari as Norah Elmer
- Rosy Varte as Germaine Doizon
- {{ill|Catherine Morin|fr}} as Hélène Grammont
- Jean-François Balmer as Julien Dallas
- Albert Delpy as Henri Vernellic
Reception
The film was the second most popular film at the French box office in 1975, after The Towering Inferno.{{cite web|url=https://translate.googleusercontent.com/translate_c?depth=1&hl=en&prev=search&rurl=translate.google.com.au&sl=fr&u=http://www.boxofficestory.com/france-1975-c24409977&usg=ALkJrhgrfUau18qOLc2z1nJcxhtNog1mrA|title=1975 French Box Office|website=Box Office Story|access-date=23 August 2016}} It was Belmondo's most popular movie since Le Casse (1972). It was also popular in Italy and Germany.{{cite web|url=https://translate.google.com/translate?depth=1&hl=en&prev=search&rurl=translate.google.com.au&sl=fr&u=http://www.boxofficestory.com/box-office-jean-paul-belmondo-c22691425/40|access-date=21 August 2016|title=Box Office Information for Jean Paul Belmondo Movies|website=Box Office Story}}
It was released in the USA and the UK as The Night Caller.
The New York Times said "it seems to be two completely different movies, neither of them up to much."{{cite news|title=Belmondo Is Sleuth in 'Night Caller'|last=Elder|first=Richard|newspaper= New York Times |date=20 November 1975|page= 51}} The Los Angeles Times thought the action sequences "keep an otherwise routine film entertaining."{{cite news|title=MOVIE REVIEW: Belmondo Agile in 'Night Caller'|last=Thomas|first= Kevin|newspaper= Los Angeles Times|date=4 March 1976|page= e10}} Time Out said Belmondo is "piling stunt on daredevil stunt and risking his neck for a particularly silly story", and "desperately little of the film's energy" goes into the plot.{{Cite web|url=https://www.timeout.com/london/film/the-night-caller-1975|title=The Night Caller (1975) {{!}} Film review|website=Time Out London|language=en|access-date=2019-09-03}}
References
{{reflist}}
External links
- {{IMDb title|id=0073535}}
- {{Rotten Tomatoes|peur_sur_la_ville}}
- [http://www.lefilmguide.com/review/peur-sur-la-ville-1975.html Fear Over the City]{{Dead link|date=December 2019 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }} at Le Film Guide
{{Henri Verneuil}}
Category:1970s French-language films
Category:1970s crime action films
Category:French crime action films
Category:Police detective films
Category:Films directed by Henri Verneuil
Category:Films scored by Ennio Morricone