In a small town in Brittany, a 10-year-old girl is found murdered. The last person known to see her alive was her art teacher and professional artist, René (Gamblin). He becomes the primary suspect in the investigation by the new chief of police, Frédérique Lesage (Bruni-Tedeschi). The investigation destroys his life as the townspeople believe that he is the killer, despite the lack of hard evidence. René is dedicated to his wife (Bonnaire), a nurse whose perpetual happy mood is the polar opposite of his dour personality. Meanwhile, Frederique becomes better acquainted with the eccentric residents of the town, including an arrogant television journalist, (de Caunes), a small-time crook who fences stolen goods (Marlot), and a bizarre pair of married shopkeepers (Ogier and Simsolo).
“A delicious sense of suspense haunts Claude Chabrol's latest character-study-cum-whodunit... which ranks just behind the excellent “La ceremonie” among the veteran helmer’s work this decade."[2]
Director Claude Chabrol, one of the most successful members of the French New Wave, is still (after a hugely busy career) able to breathe life into suspense with subtlety, irony, and humour... Chabrol, forever asking us to spot detail, ensures that every one counts. A work of superior acting and quiet strength.[3]
A superb sociological mystery, The Color of Lies (1999) examines what happens to a small Breton village when a schoolgirl's raped body is discovered in the woods... In his surest Simenonian mode, Chabrol balances the hidden, the exposed, and the philosophical with little fuss, and the characters are all drawn with a scalpel.[4]
Christopher Null of Filmcritic.com gave the film a good review but had only one issue of contention:
Claude Chabrol's late-career films haven't been entirely inspired, but The Color of Lies is one of the standouts... The sole lacking spot here is the dead fish of a police detective (Valeria Bruni Tedeschi), who's ostensibly the hero of the film yet comes off as incompetent and bumbling at best. In fact, better casting all around could have elevated this film to a minor classic.[5]
