Conrad & Crab – Idiotic Gems

Two befuddled detectives stir up comic trouble at a gem market in the village of Sainte-Marie-aux-Mines, in north-eastern France. A finely observed, whimsical comedy of social manners.

Two less-than-splendid members of the judicial police of Perpignan arrive in the small town of Sainte-Marie-aux-Mines to watch over activities at the local gem market fair. In investigating a seemingly trivial matter, they stumble onto a potentially bigger criminal network.

Don’t expect a ‘procedural’ mystery-thriller from Belgian writer-director Claude Schmitz (Braquer Poitiers, IFFR 2019). It’s the digressions from the plot that create the richness of this finely observed social mosaic – especially when Francis becomes intimately involved with one of the townsfolk, and Alain awkwardly relates to an ex-lover who is now his boss. Differences in class, gender and lifestyles trigger a whimsical, downbeat comedy of manners. The film holds a special treat for music fans: the performance of Alain by Rodolphe Burger, noted for multimedia collaborations with the likes of Jeanne Balibar (Ne change rien, IFFR 2010).

– Adrian Martin

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