La bête du Gévaudan (2003)

In south-central France in the 18th century, a mysterious were-wolf called the Beast of Gévaudan attacked about 100 people. This movie is based on that event.


The hero of this story is Pierre Rampal (Sagamore Stévenin), a traveling doctor. He goes to the village in this story to buy good fabric (for bandage etc) and starts to investigate the horrible deaths caused by giant wolves. After finding that the victims, the young women, have been raped before, he tries to tell the villagers that a man is behind some of the killings.


There are lots of interesting characters. Jean Chastel, the farm owner, is a newcomer who is more successful than the villagers so they dislike him. Marie Pourcher, the local priest's mother, has been trying to buy her land back from Chastel, who refuses to sell to her; so she says to the villagers that he is a witch and that in moonlight he turns into a were-wolf. Things become worse because the Gazzette, the newspaper read by everybody, printed the news about the killings with illustrations of giant wolves, because the bishop tells the publisher to do so. Pourcher, the priest, is a weak character and almost does everything what his mother says. Françounette is Chastel's daughter, a beautiful girl who loves to read. Marie Pourcher says the men in the village have been bewitched by Françounette. There is also the marquis, who wants to tell the priest about his sin, but is refused. Louis XV, who sends his best hunter Beauterne to kill the beast. Beauterne kills a big wolf indeed and gets a big reward, but the killings still go on. Beauterne doesn't care about the mysterious killings, he only wants to kill a wolf and goes home.


The terror finally ends after Jean Chastel kills a big wolf who has attacked his wife. He goes to see the king to report this, but doesn't receive any award at all and returns to the village in shame. The real killer is of course not any wolf, but a man wearing a wolf skin. The marquis knows who he is, but keeps silent for the killer's sister is the king's favourite woman. Rampal kills 'the beast' when he is after Françounette.


The movie is enjoyable. It reminds me of Sherlock Holmes' The Scarlet Claw.