Maigret and the Dead Lover

What it’s about

Commissaire Maigret is called to the Quai d'Orsay, where a renowned former ambassador, Monsieur Berthier-Lagès, has been found dead in his apartment, shot multiple times. His housekeeper of 46 years, Mademoiselle Larrieu, discovered the body and is in shock. During a search, Maigret and his colleague Janvier find hundreds of love letters: the diplomat carried on a fifty-year correspondence with a princess whose husband died only days before. As Maigret questions members of both families and probes the housekeeper's suspicious silence, he confronts a web of hidden relationships, inheritance struggles, and long-buried secrets.

What hooks you

Denis Podalydès plays Maigret, with Anne Alvaro as the enigmatic housekeeper. Director Pascal Bonitzer, known for intricate character studies, draws on Georges Simenon's creation. The film's tension lies in the unraveling of a double life.

Who it’s for

It is worth a look for anyone who enjoys slow-burning detective stories where family secrets and class tensions simmer beneath a polished surface, and for those drawn to classic French crime fiction.