The Flower of Evil

In her fifties, Anne, played by Nathalie Baye, decides to run for mayor of the town where she lives. As her campaign unfolds, she must contend with an unfaithful husband, anonymous leaflets accusing her family of collaborating with the Nazis during the Second World War, and the unexpected romance between her returning son and his stepsister.

The Flower of Evil is a testament to Nathalie Baye’s gift for nuanced performances in psychological thrillers. Often compared to the work of Alfred Hitchcock, Claude Chabrol’s film envelops Anne in an atmosphere of suspicion and moral ambiguity, with Baye portraying a woman whose integrity is constantly called into question. As long-buried secrets begin to surface, the film invites audiences to question who the true culprits are within this tangled web of deception.