Episode: La malédiction du lys (Curse of the Lily), runtime 1:32:14 Subtitles download link
This installment is set in Bordeaux, when it airs on MHZ it will probably be retitled Murders in Bordeaux 2, or maybe 3. It stars Erika Sainte (The Crimson Rivers) as Clémence Lacoste, and David Baïot (L'art du crime S06E01, "La nouvelle Olympia") as Antoine Rosy. Lacoste and Rosy are made to team up to solve the death of politically connected real estate developer Hervé Landry, whose murder (at his elegant mansion, discovered by friends arriving for his birthday party) bears similarities to old slave punishments-- naked, muzzled, and bound, a fleur-de-lis branded on the back of one shoulder.
Rosy is introduced as being with the Police Nationale's Domestic Intelligence unit, assigned just in case the murder was motivated by politics or terrorism. Lacoste is headed back to work following time off after being shot while attempting to arrest a criminal named Goran, who she was able to kill. Or so everyone thinks.
Difficulties arise when Lacoste reveals her personal connections to Landry and his friends, and then when BLM activist Anta Gomis informs Rosy that Lacoste's ancestors are on a list (missing) of Bordelaise families who were involved in the African slave trade.
NOTES
Yes, Hervé has named his urban renewal project New Port (0'41"), the English 'new' plus 'port' pronounced the French way.
The classical music playing when Stephane and Daphné arrive at the party (1'36") is evocative of the overture from La Fiera di Venezia by Salieri (Monty Python's Golden Age of Ballooning sketch).
A note on my method: When there are a lot of characters introduced very quickly, I like to label them all (in green font) early on, preferably as each first appears. Another time I did this was for Capitaine Marleau S04E09, "Héros malgré lui."
If by SRT (7'22") Antoine means that he works for the Service de renseignement territorial (Internal, or Domestic, Intelligence Service), it's not clear if that agency still exists in the real world, as there was a major reorganization a decade ago. "Service de renseignement territorial" currently seems to be used more often in a generic sense.
Charles the Bald AKA Charles II (8'36") was king in France and Italy, and Holy Roman Emperor, in the 9th century.
Clémence drives Antoine past Place de la Bourse (9'15"), with its famous Fountain of the Three Graces.
The Peripherique (9'38") is the ring-road (I'm putting Beltway) encircling Paris. A Parisian going outside it is analogous to a New Yorker crossing the Hudson.
The screenplay slips in some of the all-important local history (9'49"), when Antoine shows off by knowing that Georges-Eugène Haussmann was inspired by Bordeaux when he planned the redevelopment of Paris in the 19th century.
The murder scene, Landry's house, has an enormous piece of art in the front driveway that resembles a meteorite (1'46", 10'08"). The location is 10 Rue Labottière, the home of Leon Duguit (1859-1928), a legal scholar.
Clémence tells Antoine that she went to school with Landry and his friends (13'03"), et on était à P'tit Leblanc ensemble (we were at Lil Leblanc together), explaining that it is the lycée de référence des grandes familles Bordelaises (the benchmark high school for important Bordeaux families). There is no Leblanc high school in Bordeaux, but going by Clémence's description it could be based on the Saint-Genès high school-- where 100% of students get their diploma, but ranks at the bottom in social and economic diversity. Which would make Leblanc a comment on the student body's lack of diversity.
Alternatively, maybe it's P'tit Leblond. In S03E06 of Bordeaux-set Mongeville (he's a retired judge who solves crimes), the judge and his sidekick investigate the murder of a tech millionaire who attended the (also fictional) Arthur Leblond School.
Clémence says her mother's family comes from Chartrons (13'28"), a neighborhood Google describes as "leafy Chartrons, buzzing bistros and pubs fill the charming Place du Marché Chartrons. The area is also popular for waterside dining and late-night bars".
Daphne's business, Bord'oz (14'13") isn't a real business, but they really went all out making it look real, with the signage and branded car and delivery bike.
I'm translating political programme (18'13") as 'platform.'
If you hear Antoine say Pompadour indiennes (19'11"), he doesn't mean 'Indians.' Indiennes means 'Indian fabrics.'
The Médoc (22'11") is the 50-mile-long strip of land on the left (west) bank of the Garonne River as it nears the ocean, where some of the world's best wines come from.
A word for 'elementary school teacher' (23'02") is instit. It's masculine or feminine.
There is no Garonne Info newspaper (24'14", 32'25").
Cenon (24'47") is an inner suburb east of Bordeaux. Rue Zangro is named after the film's producer, Sylvain 'Zangro' De Zangroniz.
Clémence drives across the Pont Jacques Chaban-Delmas (27'19"), an iconic vertical-lift drawbridge. Chaban-Delmas (1915-2000) was a mayor of Bordeaux, and Prime Minister 1969-72.
The O in the AMENO logo is a broken chain link (27'47").
Tombe et des nues, 'falling from the clouds' (29'52"), is an interesting idiom that means to be unsettled, or to be taken aback.
Baptiste likens Goran to 'Tony Montana,' from Scarface (39'18").
Remember, from Les Pennac(s): "Mort a chant du coq," that IGPN (Internal Affairs) is called les boeufs carottes (39'37", 40'24"), 'the beef & carrots,' because they put heat on cops and simmer them.
Ivorian (42'55") refers to the Ivory Coast.
A body is found at a carrelet (56'13"), a fishing shack on stilts which are common along the Gironde estuary. In this scene it really looks like they could be at the ocean, but as it nears the Atlantic the river is over six miles wide. It should be noted that while Clemence says they are in Barsac, the river in the actual Barsac is only about 500 feet wide.
Sont ou? (65'55") means 'Are where?/Where are they?', but in this context I'm translating it as 'They're nothing.'
The Bacalan (67'20") is a district in north Bordeaux: "an up-and-coming area, with happening bars, clubs, rock music venues and hip burger joints in the boats and former warehouses along graffiti-lined Quai Armand Lalande." -Google
Clemence pronounces 'New Port' the English way (67'23").
The scene where Antoine sets up SPOILER (70'37") is a missed opportunity. It would have been better, in terms of suspense, if it had been preceded by ambiguity about Clémence's motivations. As it is, it simply points to SPOILER as a suspect, and it comes out of left field. I blame the screenwriter.
Porterai le chapeau, 'wear the hat' (71'35"), is a great idiom that means 'To be blamed.'
Ligue 2 (74'44") is the second-division football league in France. Calling someone that is probably a diss.
As SPOILER names the illegal ways he's helped Daphne, he lists corruption, tax evasion, and beau bien sociaux (86'55"). The latter literally means 'beautiful social goods/benefits.' Given the context I'm translating it as 'corporate welfare.'
Anta says Passe to say goodbye (91'03")-- it's clearly what she says even though I've been told, emphatically, that that's wrong, that you must say passez bon journée, which means 'Have a nice day.' So I'm avoiding the controversy and putting down the equally informal 'Have a good one.'
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