Dossier 137

A case. A dossier. More precisely, number 137. That’s the heart of the film directed by Dominik Moll and presented at the 2025 Cannes Film Festival. Mainly set in Paris, with some pivotal scenes shot in the small town of Saint-Dizier, which is the hometown of both the protagonist, Stéphanie (played by Léa Drucker), and the victim at the center of the infamous case, Guillaume Girard, the film concentrates on the other side of the Yellow Vest protests, focusing in particular on police abuse against demonstrators who, in this case, were not creating any threat.

Although Guillaume and his family initially joined the protest more because of curiosity than due to a real understanding of its seriousness, it quickly escalated, with the young man ending up gravely injured after a police crackdown, specifically suffering severe physical and neurological damage. Stéphanie, an investigator with IGPN (the French equivalent of Internal Affairs), finds herself tasked with investigating members of her institution. She faces hostility on two sides: from citizens who see her as part of the system that oppresses them, and from a police force that focuses on self-protection.

Stéphanie proves herself to be driven by fair principles and relentless, determined to pursue the truth even if it means sacrificing her personal and family relationships. Léa Drucker carries the entire film with vigorous strength, balancing the procedural tension of the investigation with tender human moments, especially in scenes with her son, and offers a compelling performance.

Visually, the film relies heavily on a cool-toned palette, dominated by shades of blue that mirror the institutional and investigative world Stéphanie lives in every day. The camerawork is mostly static, focusing on administrative interiors and sterile offices, which offer a visual contrast to the chaos and movement of the demonstrators' scenes.

Themes such as the limits of the law, media bias, internal loyalty among police ranks, and the lack of institutional transparency are all explored with clarity. What makes the film particularly powerful is its perspective: it looks from within the system, not through the eyes of the victims or the public, but through someone inside the machinery, in particular someone who’s trying to bring justice in a structure that seems built to resist it.

By Paolo Alessi