Five gangsters raise the cash to buy a large shipment of drugs which they plan to sell on. One of the gang however plans to secretly rob his partners, beginning a spiral of violence and deception that leaves a trail of bodies across France. Fiendishly plotted with a twisty script from Jose Giovanni (Le trou) and Claude Sautet (Classe tous risques), adapting a novel by Reynaud-Fourton, Symphony for a Massacre sees the French master of the mystery thriller Jacques Deray (La piscine) directing with with real energy and verve. With support from a remarkable cast of France’s finest character actors, and stunning photography by Claude Renoir (La grande illusion), this is French crime cinema of the highest quality.
