Le cave est piégé

Victor Merenda made three movies ,two of which are worth seeking:

"sursis pour un vivant" ,on a screenplay written by highly talented Frederic Dard ,starring Lino Ventura and Henri Vidal, was a suspenseful thriller, sometimes recalling Agatha Christie's "ten little Indians" ,the 1965 version.

"la nuit des suspectes" saw Dard adapt a Robert Thomas play with talent ;unfortunately the film was unnoticed and the movie was later remade by François Ozon as " 8 femmes ",starring Catherine Deneuve ;the ending was sweetened,but the film was a blockbuster in France.

And we're left with this French- Spanish co-production and it's by far the weakest link of Merenda's "trilogy.

A former football champion ,Jean Farand is involved in a murder and becomes a fugitive :helped by his secretary and a shady person he pays to investigate the low-life places of Madrid.

This final movie found Merenda drained of enregy :the story is derivative to a fault : Frank Villard is a listless hero ,Dario Moreno is better at dancing than at investigating.Maria Mahor as the football player's wife is insignificant .Only Dany Carrel as the determined secretary plays her game well.Still it does not save the movie .