Original subtitles

Prelude in C minor BWV 999 (Johann Sebastian Bach)

Ladies and gentlemen, the Court.

- The criminal hearing is now open. Please be seated.

Indistinct chatter

- No, Ryan!

- That’s my blankie!

- Ouch! - Dinner’s ready!

Dinner’s ready!

- Hello. Is your father here? - Yes.

Dad?

- Nicolas Milik? - Yes?

- You’re under arrest for intentional homicide of your wife.

- Intentional homicide? - Come with us.

- What did I do?

Oh!

I can’t leave my children.

- Dad!

- Last week, a kid died over some weed.

I’m scared for my son, Counselor.

He’s going to ruin his life with the people he hangs out with.

Talk to him. He’s all I’ve got. He’ll listen to you.

- I’ll try.

- And what about my VAT issue? - I’m handling it.

Here you go.

No, I'll send you my fees.

Alright, goodbye. - Thank you.

Estudio No.3 (Agustin Barrios Mangoré)

It's crazy that you still have that painting.

It's a gift.

I know. I was the one who gave it to you.

For our first wedding anniversary.

Yeah.

You bought it from your friends who had that gallery.

No. No, I bought it in

Aix.

No, you bought it here.

No. - Yes.

Phone.

Ah - Is that you?

No, it's you.

Yes?

Nothing that can wait until tomorrow?

Okay.

I'll call you back.

The police station, for a court-appointed case.

Of course, I'm the only one answering at this hour.

Are you going to go? I don't really have a choice.

Sigh.

But tonight, I would have liked to just relax.

Do you want to do me this favor?

Oh no. Just for tonight.

No. You can do it.

You're in custody. I'll take over the case tomorrow.

Come on Come on, Jean.

He laughs.

Ouch, ouch, ouch.

Because it's you.

Thanks.

Don't go home.

Sleep here, it's ridiculous.

No, I'd rather not.

I'd rather sleep in my own bed.

Thank you.

Lawyer. Good evening.

It's 12:30 a.m. You have 30 minutes.

Can you unshackle the gentleman? Of course.

I'm Maître Monier, your court-appointed lawyer.

I don't know why we're meeting.

You don't know why you're here?

I'm accused of killing my wife.

No one is accusing you. You're in custody.

There's doubt, suspicion.

The police need information for the investigation.

Why am I not being released?

The facts are serious. They can hold you for 48 hours.

Let's leave it at that.

Tell me in detail what happened last night.

I've already explained.

Now, it's my turn to hear the explanation.

I don't belong here. I should be with my kids.

He sighs.

Mr. Milik, if you want me to help you, you need to open up a bit.

Last night, my wife and I had a fight.

For what reason?

She had one drink too many again.

I told her I was worried about her.

That's all.

She lost it and told me, 'I do what I want.'

And then?

She yelled at me to get out of the house.

I said it was my home too.

She tried to slap me.

I dodged, but

She still scratched me pretty badly.

Was she violent with you? No.

Well, only when she drinks too much.

Whenever I talk to her about alcohol, it makes her furious.

She's stubborn.

Were you violent with her?

I've never laid a hand on her.

She's the mother of my children.

And we're not built the same.

After she tried to slap you, what did you do?

I told her I wasn't going anywhere.

And that

I said some words

You know how fights go.

What exactly did you say?

That she should shut her mouth.

She left, I begged her to stay.

But no use.

I hate it when she crashes out on her bench.

- Which bench?

- When she's drunk,

she goes to the bench in the village square.

Just two minutes from our place.

- And did she go there this time?

- Yeah, I think so. I

It hurts me to see her destroy herself like that.

I don't recognize her anymore.

It's not good for the kids.

Since she started drinking, she doesn't take care of them anymore.

Can't reason with her.

- Yeah, I get it.

After she left, what did you do?

- I checked to make sure we hadn't woken the little ones.

They were asleep. Then I went to Roger's.

- Roger's?

- My friend Roger's bar.

Five minutes on foot.

- What time was it?

- Around 11 p.m.

- Did you drink there? - A glass of milk.

- No alcohol? - I don't drink, never liked it.

- Were there other people?

- Roger, his wife, but she went to bed.

Roland,

Rachid, and Karim.

We don't really talk much.

- What time did you get home?

- Around 12:30, 1 a.m.

- Approximately.

We talked with Roger, then I went home.

- Your wife wasn’t back yet. Didn’t that worry you?

- She sometimes falls asleep on her bench.

- Outside, like that, on the bench, in winter?

- It happens.

- When the police came, she still hadn’t returned.

Didn’t that worry you either?

- Her sister Audrey often comes to get her.

And usually, she comes back the next evening.

- Does her sister live far?

- At Pontet, near Avignon.

- Had your wife had any trouble with the locals?

- Oh, no.

- Anyone she might have argued with?

- No, I don’t think so.

- If you’re not involved,

someone must have a reason.

Think about it. Please, help me.

- I swear, I don’t know.

I don’t know, I swear. I

I want my children and my wife back.

I’m going crazy here.

- Gentlemen. - Hello.

Hello, Jean.

Mr. Salah? That's me.

Sorry about that.

Oh!

You didn't sleep? No.

Did you read the article?

Don't you want to go back and rest? No.

Did you read the article?

Yes, yes.

It's horrible.

What did you think of this guy?

No criminal record or past offenses.

He's neither a believable culprit

nor an obvious innocent.

What state was he in?

Nervous, lost.

More worried about his kids than himself.

He doesn't understand, he's in denial.

He talks about his wife in the present tense.

I'm curious to see the

the file.

You want to defend him?

Yes.

You haven't pleaded

at the Assizes since the Portal case. How long has it been

15 years?

How can I defend you if you don't tell me everything?

What are you talking about? I saw the investigation file.

Roger's statements the night of the crime.

That's the first thing you should have said.

I can't discover these elements five minutes before seeing the judge.

- Roger, what are you doing here?

I didn't say anything against you.

Roger!

Roger!

- Mr. Milik,

the evening before the incident,

you went to Mr. Roger Marton's café.

How did he react when he saw you arrive?

- I wasn't feeling well.

- Please speak into the microphone, Mr. Milik.

- He saw I wasn't well.

He understood it was because of Cécile. We were arguing.

- Tell us what happened next from there.

- I sat at the bar.

I told him about my argument.

- Last call, we're closing.

Okay? Thanks.

- She's crazy.

If she doesn't stop drinking, call social services on her.

You'll be better off.

- I can't do that.

- Too kind, too dumb.

Don't be surprised she walks all over you. - She doesn't walk all over me.

She's got character. - Roger,

stop interfering.

- We're just talking. - Leave him alone.

I'm going to bed.

- See you later.

- Without the kids, I would have ended it all.

- Isn't it wrong to say that?

- Ah, I knew it! - Oh!

We can't hear each other anymore!

- Of course, we only hear you. - This is my place, after all.

Your Cécile isn't exactly a walk in the park.

You're worth more than that.

- A walk in the park?

- A real mess. She's an alcoholic.

- It's not her fault. - It's not her fault?

Whose fault is it then?

If tomorrow she takes

your kids, that's not her fault?

How will you protect them from her if you're not around?

- I don't know. - You said it yourself.

You'll end it all.

You let yourself be killed, walked all over.

You're like a kid, just watching her.

You're not a man.

Want my picture?

I'll tell you, if I were you,

it would have happened a while ago

- Happened what? - You know what I mean.

Okay, we're closing.

- Mr. Milik, during your three years in pre-trial detention,

you named Mr. Roger Marton

as your friend.

Can we say you admired him?

- He was my only friend.

He's sobbing.

'Mr. Milik?'

'Yes, yes, sorry.'

'Excuse me.'

'If he was your only friend, his opinion mattered.'

'Right?'

'You didn't want to disappoint him.'

'Yeah, not disappoint him.'

'When Roger suggested you kill your wife,'

'wasn't he going too far?'

'I didn't take him seriously.'

'When he was drunk, he wanted to kill everyone.'

'He barked, but he didn't bite.'

'When he said you weren't a man,'

'didn't that upset you?'

'Didn't you want to prove him wrong?'

'My client is not a child.'

'He wouldn't kill his wife just to get his friend's approval.'

'Counsel, you'll have time to speak.'

'Go on.' 'Excuse me.'

'Mr. Milik, six months earlier,'

'you consulted a lawyer about a divorce?'

'Just to get information.'

'What were the reasons for that?'

'Cécile was drinking too much.'

'It was becoming dangerous for Emma and Maël.'

'They were very young.'

'You had'

'considered getting rid of her.'

'Legally, I mean.'

No, I didn't do anything.

I didn't want to take my kids away from her.

You've seen the lawyer twice.

You can love someone and still get divorced.

You can love someone and kill them.

That'll be all, thank you.

Counselor, for the defense.

Mr. Milik, when you asked about

the divorce process,

what did that colleague tell you about custody of your children?

That if it went before a judge,

there's a good chance I'd get custody.

Because of her alcoholism, I assume.

You don't drink.

And yet,

if you'd divorced and gotten custody,

your wife would have kept the house you lived in, right?

The house belongs to Cécile. She inherited it from her father.

Who left her the usufruct.

He also left the bare ownership to your sister-in-law,

Audrey Girard, who currently lives there.

In other words,

even if you hadn't been charged with this murder,

your sister-in-law

would have inherited the house and you would have had to move out.

We agree on that? Yes, exactly.

You knew that killing your wife

wouldn't make you inherit her house.

Let's go back to the conversation you had with the

the colleague.

Regarding the divorce proceedings.

If you had started them, what would have happened financially?

No, I

In terms of the family benefits you were receiving

to raise your children.

- I would have gotten them.

Like with custody.

- Would that money have allowed you to find a home

and provide for their needs? - Yes.

- So, can we say a divorce

would have been easy and in your favor?

- Hmm.

- Also, did your wife

have a life insurance policy?

- No.

- Did she have any savings?

- She had nothing, except

her half of the house.

- That half would go to her sister

and your children if your sister-in-law passed away.

To sum up,

your wife's death

would have brought you nothing but grief.

Thank you, Mr. Milik.

- Thank you, Counselor.

Prelude and Fugue No. 2 in C minor (Johann Sebastian Bach)

- for her children, for Elodie,

for Jade, for Ryan,

for Maël and Emma. May they receive this

strength and this comfort.

Hail Mary, full of grace,

the Lord is with you;

blessed are you among all women,

and Jesus, the fruit of your womb,

is blessed.

Holy Mary, Mother of God,

pray for us

"Stop, let me go."

"Please, don’t touch me."

"Who do you think you are?"

"Let’s go inside, kids."

"The priest is singing."

Prelude and Fugue No. 2 in C minor (Johann Sebastian Bach)

"Yes?" "It’s for the lawyer’s visiting room."

Clinking sounds

"If you refuse to attend the reconstruction,"

it will be held against you.

"Why don’t you want to go?"

"What difference does it make, anyway?"

"Think about your children."

"If I can’t see them"

"We’ll file another visitation request. I’ve seen social services."

"Do you have children?"

"Yes."

"I have some points to clarify."

"Like that mud story."

On your shoes and your pants.

The forensic report says they found the same

on Roger and Cécile's clothes.

How do you explain that?

- I don't know.

And I won't go to the reconstruction because I didn't do anything.

What day is it?

- It's Saturday.

- When the weather was nice, we'd go to the Aulnes pond with Ryan.

Roger lent me his gear.

I was going to give him his first fishing rod with a nice reel.

In two years. He's still a bit young.

- If you help me, in two years, you'll be out.

Pavane Op 50 (Gabriel Fauré)

Barking

- What is this about?

- I'm Me Monier, your brother-in-law's lawyer.

I need to collect some things from him.

- He won't get anything.

- Mrs. Girard, if you have something to say,

I'm all ears.

He doesn't always tell me everything.

- Malo, get lost. Come on, scram.

Get lost.

Did you see how pretty she was?

She wasn't always the wreck she's become.

She was stylish when she worked at the town hall.

She loved to laugh a lot and

dance.

Before she met that bastard.

Because

You defend him,

but he's a bastard.

I'm not saying he didn't make her happy for a while,

but those kids he had with her

He ruined her life.

When our father died, it was a shock.

It was like she had no one left to protect her.

Gradually, she started drinking more and more.

I was ashamed

and hurt having to pick her up off that bench, in that state.

She never confided in me about her life.

I used to tell her,

"Stay at my place."

She loved her kids, even if she didn't take good care of them.

"Give him the photos of his family."

It'll hurt him like he hurts me.

Now, get out of here.

"You don't like what I stand for."

"I don't care."

If he gets away with it, my sister's memory will haunt your sleep.

Hammering

"The victim likely died around 2 a.m.,

the night of Wednesday, February 19 to Thursday, February 20, 2017,

give or take thirty minutes."

These photos were taken about seven hours after the crime.

"Any traces of alcohol in the blood?"

- Yes. According to the examination and the dating,

the blood alcohol level was 4.1 grams per liter.

Only one wound was found on the neck.

The cut was caused by a sharp object

with a serrated blade,

like a survival knife.

The dissection shows

a section of the right carotid artery.

The blade pierced the neck on its right posterior side, at point A.

It continued its path toward the left posterior side,

cutting the carotid at point B.

According to the wound examination, the blow,

single and fatal, was delivered with force,

and from behind.

- Madam President, a question, please.

- Go ahead.

- Expert, the blow went from right to left

and from behind.

Could you demonstrate the assassin's movements?

- The expert will refrain. He is not a mime.

- If you allow me, I will do it.

I have great admiration for the mime Marceau.

Laughter. - Go ahead.

- Thank you.

Expert, could you please,

describe while I proceed?

- Go ahead. - Uh, well, then

The assassin was behind the victim,

he held her still with one hand.

- With one hand

Like this? - Yes.

He plunged the knife blade into her throat with his other hand.

- Like this?

Thank you.

If the cut was from right to left,

could we say it was the work of a left-hander?

- That's likely.

- Thank you.

- Thank you, Doctor, for your testimony.

A new path opens up for you for a career change.

Laughter

Mr. Expert, please continue.

He clears his throat.

- The horizontal shape of the wound and the blood

on the victim's knees indicate she was standing.

- Are there any other injuries?

- No, no injuries.

No defensive wounds or dragging marks.

- Madam President,

I have a question. - Go ahead.

- In the absence of such traces,

could the victim have been placed at the scene

by someone familiar to her?

- That's a possibility, yes.

- That will be all, thank you.

- Ms. Marton,

on the evening before the incident, did you hear the accused

express a wish to end things with his wife?

- Not that I know of.

That's the last one, we're closing.

- And your husband?

- She's an addict.

If she doesn't stop drinking, get the social services involved.

You'll have peace of mind.

- I can't do that.

- He gave advice to Nicolas.

Nothing alarming. - Don’t be surprised she’s crushing you.

- She’s not crushing me, she’s got character.

- Roger, stop interfering.

- We’re just talking. - Leave him alone.

I went upstairs to bed.

- You didn’t fall asleep right away.

- No, I took off my makeup.

And then,

I got into bed with a book.

I heard

the metal shutter; it was 1 a.m.

Creaking.

- Laure

- Yes?

- Laure

- Take a Doliprane from the bathroom.

Inaudible remarks.

What? What are you saying?

- What did he answer you?

- He said:

"I did it, damn it, I did it."

Murmur.

- Silence.

Silence, please.

Mrs. Marton, did your husband tell you

what he had done?

No, he didn’t say anything else.

He had drunk too much.

He fell asleep 30 seconds later.

And the next day?

No.

He stayed in bed in the morning.

He told me he didn’t want to open the door because he was sick.

I said, 'Okay.'

In your opinion, what did he do between 1 a.m.,

when Nicolas Milik supposedly left the bar,

and 3:15 a.m., when he joined you

in the room?

I don’t know.

I never found out.

Less than 24 hours

after the incident,

the police arrested your husband.

Can you tell us what they found?

He had a gun. It didn’t work.

And he also had

a war knife.

What does it look like?

The one with holes on the handle to put your fingers through.

holes to put the fingers through.

A brass knuckle? Yes, exactly.

It’s pretty big.

I have it. It was in the bar, under the sink.

- I'm asking you again,

what did your husband tell the police during his first interview?

- That he hadn’t done anything special.

- Nothing else?

Let me remind you.

He said that between Mr. Milik leaving

and his arrival in your room,

he had tidied up the bar.

- For two hours?

- Maybe I watched some TV.

- You didn’t take your vehicle?

- I was completely wasted.

If I’d taken my car, I would’ve wrecked it.

- Do you own

a survival knife?

- Affirmative.

- Do you know where it is?

- In the garage.

With my army memorabilia.

- So why was it found under the sink in the bar?

- At some point, I think I took it.

- Oh really?

- Ask my wife.

Drunk, I lock myself in my workshop.

I put on my uniform.

Some nights, I wear my beret; it makes the customers laugh.

- Okay.

You took your knife and went to the bar.

- If you found it in the bar, yes.

- Did you clean it?

- No.

- We found it wet with traces of dish soap.

- Well, I washed it. What else do you want me to say?

- There you go. You can understand my doubts

about your husband's testimony.

Madam President, could you request

the unsealing of exhibit number seven?

- Bailiff?

- Do you recognize this knife, Mrs. Marton?

- It's my husband's.

- It has the same features

as the one used in the crime.

Serrated blade, similar length.

Furthermore,

the analysis report reveals Roger Marton's DNA

on the handle and also a tiny

particle of flesh between the handle and the blade.

Unfortunately,

too tiny to determine its date

and origin.

I have one last question, Mrs. Marton.

Which hand did your husband write with?

- Left.

- I will conclude by specifying that my client is right-handed.

Thank you.

- Excuse me, Counselor.

Your insinuation is purely interpretative.

I see it as evidence against the accused.

If Mr. Milik had killed his wife,

he could have used his right-handed strength

to hold her down

and the blow would have been delivered by his left hand.

- Given the depth of the wound,

he wouldn't have been able to push the blade in with his weaker arm.

- Counselor, we're not here to judge a contest of strength.

- What are you drawing, Emma?

- Dad's prison.

With us in front, so maybe one day we can see him again.

- Yeah, that's good.

Jade?

Didn't you draw anything for Dad?

Jade?

- Kids, it's recess.

- No, no, stay.

Sit down.

Jade isn't getting better, is she?

- No, she still isn't talking.

But she played with other kids last week.

What did they say about the release request?

- It was rejected again.

Your dad asked me to tell you

he loves you very much and thinks you're

very brave, and that he misses you terribly.

- Do you think we'll manage to see him?

- Visits are complicated.

Have you thought about what I asked you?

Coming to testify?

- No, I don't want to.

- Why? It would help your father if you testified.

- I'm ashamed.

- In the mud, we find the same pollution components

as in your street.

But no trace of pollution was found in the mud at the Van Gogh bridge,

during the first examination.

So, on this point, you are completely cleared.

- Thank you, Maître.

- I need you to clarify the nature

of the relationship between your wife and Roger.

- Again with Roger?

- If I can't prove he was familiar with Cécile,

they'll argue she let herself be taken

as a point against you.

- That means nothing.

She was drunk. Anyone could have taken her.

- Yes, but

we have no other suspect.

Understand, it's not against him, but for you.

Did your wife frequent Roger's bar?

- It happened.

- How was he with her?

- Good, polite.

- Did she know he was your best friend?

- Hm.

- Well, there you go. We're making progress.

Hey

Here, from Elodie.

- That was one hell of a wedding.

Cécile's father was still alive then.

He really liked me.

He had a fight

with Audrey because she didn't want to come.

- She didn't want to come?

- It was too soon.

- You got married quickly? - Two months after we met.

- How did you meet?

- It was the Bastille Day party.

She had this soft look in her eyes.

I couldn't stop staring at her.

At one point, she noticed me.

She asked what my problem was.

I said, 'Nothing.'

And that I thought she was pretty.

Then I asked her to dance.

- She said yes? - Yeah.

I couldn't believe it.

We went out for dinner.

We talked a lot.

It felt good.

She had also lost her mother when she was a kid.

I drove her home.

As she was getting out of the car,

I tried to kiss her.

And since she let me

I thought maybe I'd never be alone again.

- Mr. Monier

Did he explain it to you? - Yes.

Jean told me everything in detail.

- They beat him up because he ratted them out.

He doesn't want to have anything to do with their operation anymore.

I'm scared for my son.

He's a young bullfighter with talent.

He's going to ruin his life.

You have to help me talk some sense into him.

He wants to withdraw his complaint.

- Jean?

What's wrong?

Jean?

Hey, hey

- Oh, it's nothing.

I just had a

a little dizzy spell. I'm fine.

- Are you okay? - Yeah. I'm better now. It's nothing.

- Should I call a doctor? - No, no, it's nothing.

- You scared me earlier.

You looked as white as a sheet.

Why are you smiling? - It's just an expression.

White as a sheet. My mother used to say that.

- I'm not your mother.

But I'm telling you, you should take care of yourself.

You're working too hard.

You're burning out.

I haven't seen you like this since Portal.

- Nothing to do with that. There's no proof.

The whole case is bogus.

- So you think he's innocent?

- That's not the point.

I'm just talking about my defense. I want to believe in my arguments.

- But can you admit that you might be wrong?

- Yes, I can admit that I might be wrong.

- I have great news.

Mrs. Diallo from social services contacted me.

Elodie agrees to testify.

If her father agrees,

she will be a witness. - Great.

- Maître Monier?

I've heard some shocking things.

Portal, does that ring a bell?

- Madam, please.

- The great lawyer who got Portal, the old man killer, pardoned.

- Madam, that's enough.

- What did Portal do,

right after being released?

He killed again and again.

- Come on, that's enough.

- Go ahead, asshole!

Go do your dirty job!

- Your daughter Elodie has to come testify.

- Testify about what?

- That she needs you.

She is responsible for her four brothers and sisters.

- I don't want to.

- You don't understand.

If I file a request, the judge won't be able to say no.

- She must not see this.

- She's tall.

- I don't want her to see me here.

After three years,

I don't want to.

I don't want to.

- You confirm: no DNA traces of Nicolas Milik

or of Cécile Milik

were found in Mr. Marton's vehicle?

- Exactly. - And on the body?

- The autopsy revealed the presence

of Nicolas Milik's DNA only.

- That's normal, as he was the victim's husband.

- You're right.

But one detail disrupts this feeling of normality.

Officer, what does the autopsy report say

about the victim's nails?

- Under the right middle and ring fingernails,

forensic medicine found a tiny blood crust

belonging to Mr. Milik.

- As stated in my client's interrogation report,

shortly before the tragedy, they argued

and Mrs. Milik tried to slap my client.

She scratched his neck.

- Stop interrupting, Madam Prosecutor.

Let her conduct her questioning.

- Thank you, Madam President.

That's not the point I'm interested in.

Officer, please continue.

- A tiny blue thread residue was found under her right index fingernail.

a tiny trace of blue thread.

- You must be referring to the bright blue suit

Mr. Milik was wearing, according to witnesses,

the night before the incident.

- And which was found balled up at the foot of the bed

during the search of his home.

- My next question is for the defendant.

Mr. Milik, you weren’t wearing a jacket

during that argument with your wife.

How then was a thread residue found under her fingernail?

- I don’t know.

- If you weren’t wearing your jacket,

as you stated in your interrogation report,

how could that thread have ended up under her nail after a slap,

along with

your blood?

Your wife couldn’t have pulled a thread from your trousers.

It seems impossible she would bend down

to hit you in the face.

- I’m not sure anymore. Maybe I was wearing my jacket.

- Oh no.

Officer, please remind us of the exact words the defendant used

during his interrogation regarding what he was wearing

during the altercation with his wife.

- He said he was wearing his shirt tucked into his blue suit trousers.

Not his jacket.

- Not his jacket. However,

what’s more likely is that

she struggled when she realized your intention

near the Van Gogh bridge.

She would have attacked you.

That would explain the presence of the blue thread

and your blood. - I could also have

been mistaken back then about what I was wearing at my hearing.

- Even if you were wearing it,

you say the argument happened around 10 p.m.

Is it possible

that a thread fragment

could stay under a fingernail that long without coming loose?

If the victim was killed around 2 a.m.,

that's still four hours.

- Counsel, for the defense.

- I'll first respond to the prosecutor.

My client has absolutely no reason

to remember what he was wearing that night.

- He remembered the next day.

- Today, three years later,

it was just an ordinary night like any other.

He has no reason

to recall exactly what he wore.

It's like asking him

what he wore on December 22, 2016, for example.

- Now that, I remember.

It was the Christmas party at school.

I had my gray pinstripe suit.

My favorite.

- Counsel,

it would be wiser to rely on the officer.

- Annie?

Are you pleading today?

- Yes.

And I just lost.

Your little torero got 3 years for drug trafficking.

- Nicolas's daughter

has to come testify.

- Did you hear what I said?

- Yes, yes, the little torero.

I'll talk to his father.

- I don't think that's his priority.

- Oh, Annie

Do you have time for a coffee?

- Yes. I do. But not you.

Fuck

- Mr. Milik?

Hello, sir. Put down the dough.

I'm here to inform you of Mr. Marton's death.

He was found dead in his cell.

I'm sorry, sir.

- He coughed up blood all night.

No one came to help him.

They let him die like a dog.

- Nicolas, this is painful for you,

but it will help us.

- No, Maître.

It's not possible.

- Should I give you the list of charges against him?

Why are you freezing up? - He's my friend.

- Last month, at the judge's, he said he hadn't seen you

come home.

He said witnesses saw

your car at the Van Gogh bridge.

- He was protecting himself.

- Stop with your damn loyalty.

Let me defend you.

- But Laure - But what? What, Laure?

Would you rather have her shamed or see her spend life in prison?

- All right, Counselor, go ahead.

- I learned about your client's disappearance.

Please accept my condolences. - It's his widow who should receive

your condolences.

I assume compassion isn't why you're here.

- You're right, my dear colleague.

- Let's skip the pleasantries.

- Very well. I sincerely believe

my client is innocent.

- Why?

- Beyond the case file, it's about Mr. Marton's death.

Before that,

I thought he feared him, protected him.

But even after his death, he continues to show

unwavering loyalty to him.

He believes him innocent.

- Are you saying my client was the culprit?

- That's why I'm here.

It's delicate,

but in the privacy

of your conversations,

Didn't he confess to you?

If that's the case,

we would request the bar association

to lift attorney-client privilege so you could

testify as a witness - Get out of my office.

Get out or I'll have you disbarred.

Get out.

Out!

Out!

- Why did you go to Montel to squeeze information out of him?

- Roger Marton died yesterday.

- I know.

He told me everything and said he would have turned you in

if he and I hadn't defended together.

- Yeah, it was risky.

But it had to be tried.

In his place, I wouldn't have hesitated.

- Are you losing it or what?

- Don't tell me no other colleague has ever tried that.

- I don't care about others. You're the one who almost got disbarred.

- I want to avoid a miscarriage of justice.

An innocent man risks spending his life in prison.

- See? You're making it personal.

- He hasn't changed his story in 3 years.

No confession, nothing.

What would you have thought?

- Probably the same as you.

But I keep a cool head.

I don't shut myself off from the world when I'm fighting injustice.

Damn!

- Who's talking to me now?

My partner or my wife?

- Your friend, Jean!

I know your tendency to isolate yourself when you're vulnerable.

- Stop putting yourself in my shoes!

But it's annoying!

I'm pleading in less than two months!

I don't need this, Annie!

- I was at my grandmother's when I saw the call for witnesses.

I remembered that night, near the bridge.

- What did you see?

- It was 2 a.m.

I was heading home. Well, to my parents' place.

I saw a big car stopped near the Van Gogh bridge.

The headlights were on.

- Where exactly?

- On the other side of the bridge, by the canal.

I was going towards Arles.

- Mr. Clerk.

Was it one of these vehicles?

- I can't say.

With the headlights on, you couldn't see anything.

- What did you see?

- Two figures behind the car.

In front of the trunk wide open.

- Describe for us

The body shapes of the figures.

- It's just a feeling,

but the person rummaging through the trunk

was taller.

The other one, we couldn't see.

- So

I want to point out that Roger Marton is 10 cm taller than the victim.

As for my client, he's only 4 cm taller than his wife.

- Any questions? Questions? - No.

- I passed by there around 2 a.m.

- What did you see?

- A big, dark car.

Parked near the old bridge, headlights on full beam.

It's not common to see a car parked there.

I thought it had broken down.

I slowed down to check.

There was no one behind the wheel.

The trunk was open.

There were two people

at the back of the car.

- Did you stop? - Yes.

They were about thirty meters away from me.

So, I saw some movement.

There were two people standing.

And

a third person on the ground,

at their feet, arms raised.

Noise

- Silence,

please.

What did you do next?

- I left.

I thought about some young people who had been drinking

and the one on the ground was throwing up.

- But you called the police eight days later.

- When I saw

the witness appeal in my newspaper that I read every morning.

- Sir,

the person with their arms raised,

didn't that seem like a distress signal to you?

- It looked like a drunk

who had fallen and wanted help.

- No strange noises?

Screams, for example?

Radio playing in the background

- I was listening to my radio.

The windows were closed, so

no.

- Do you remember the build of the people standing?

- Not really, no.

- And the person on the ground?

Radio playing in the background

- No, not really.

- Thank you, that will be all.

- Counsel for the defense.

- Yes, thank you.

Sir, are you a secondhand dealer? - Antique dealer.

- Yes, antique dealer.

The night you passed by the bridge road,

you said in your testimony

Coming back from the Nîmes flea market where you had a stall.

You must have arrived in Nîmes early.

- At 7 a.m. for setup, yes.

- And you left at 2 a.m. the next morning.

- He's the one who killed my sister!

We went out to dinner with some friends.

Did you drink at this dinner?

Oh, just a little.

Two or three glasses.

But I see where you're going with this.

I know what I saw.

- What you saw

in the glare of the headlights, alcohol-fueled,

after an 18-hour workday,

what you saw without hearing,

that silhouette in distress on the ground

could have been a stump, some bushes.

And the arms raised,

branches.

- Oh I can tell the difference between bushes and a person.

- Since he says he saw it!

Isn't that enough?

What more do you want?

- Please, have a seat.

- He killed my sister!

Murderer!

Officers, please escort Mrs. Girard out.

The hearing is adjourned.

We will resume tomorrow morning.

Audrey screams.

Suite for solo cello No.1 in G major

(Johann Sebastian Bach)

- Hmm

- Are you okay?

- You should be the one to ask.

- Today's the big day.

- Did he give you the green light for his daughter?

- No.

He doesn't understand that he has no choice.

- Are you planning to go against his wishes?

- He's incapable of making a decision.

- So what?

- Annie,

the president hasn't delivered a single acquittal in two years.

What choice do I have left?

- Your plea.

- It won't be enough.

I'll do everything to save him.

- No, are you serious?

You think you're Almighty?

We're just asking you to defend him.

Ladies and gentlemen, the Court.

Sir,

you responded to the call issued

by the gendarmerie in La Provence

eight days after the incident?

Yes.

You said you read that newspaper every morning.

For 40 years.

It was called Le Provençal back then.

In that case, you must have read the first article published about the case

reporting the discovery of the victim?

Certainly, yes.

In that first article, published 48 hours

after the incident,

the place and date of the crime were indicated.

Black on white.

Why didn’t you think to call the gendarmes at that time?

to call the police?

Forty-eight hours later, having seen what you say you saw.

I

No idea, I

There was no call for witnesses. Well,

you didn’t connect the dots between these two matters,

the person you saw lying on the ground

and the victim’s body found in the same place?

Listen

I I have no answer for that.

Let’s move on to the second article published

eight days after the incident

with the gendarmerie’s call for witnesses.

Once again, the crime scene was mentioned.

And the two suspects placed in pre-trial detention,

that is, along with the victim, three people.

My question is this:

Could there be some degree of self-suggestion?

After reading in the newspaper about three people,

you said you saw three people.

- I have no memory or vision problems.

Damn it, enough already. - Calm down,

sir.

- I'm not going to repeat myself!

- Show some respect to the defense lawyer.

This is a court of Assizes.

- I apologize.

- Thank you, that will be all.

- Sir, the Court thanks you.

Uh, any questions for the accused?

Good.

The hearing will resume

with the civil party's plea,

the public prosecutor's requisitions, and the defense's plea.

The Well-Tempered Clavier: Prelude (Johann Sebastian Bach)

- Now's the time to pee.

- I represent the voice of the five Milik children,

as the civil party on behalf of their social services administrator.

to social services.

First, I must say that the eldest,

Elodie, 13, and Ryan, 12,

are fully informed

and aware of the situation.

Today, I would like

to share with you their deep belief.

Neither Elodie nor Ryan believe their father capable of what he is accused of.

And, by their own admission,

they miss their father terribly.

This father, who raised them alone,

with love,

made sure they had a decent life,

despite the indifference of a wife

who was alcoholic and absent towards her children.

I am not here to condemn

or accuse,

but to represent these five children

who lost their mother

and whose interest lies in the truth about this tragedy.

The truth.

At the end of the proceedings, I must admit

I personally harbor serious doubts about Mr. Milik's guilt.

Of course, I will defer

to the decision of the Court and the jurors.

Thank you.

- I would like to express my respect

for what Mr. Milik's children feel.

But neither I, nor the Court,

nor the jurors are his children.

We must accept that, between justice and their father,

they might very well choose their father.

We could never make that choice,

because Nicolas Milik is indeed guilty.

So,

You'll say the accused has no motive.

In what crime of passion is there an objective motive?

A tangible motive?

His is exasperation.

That night,

after yet another argument, the accused heads to Roger's place

to whine to his friend Marton.

Does he already intend to kill his wife?

No, probably not.

Marton hasn't strongly suggested it yet.

The witnesses didn't see him describe the crime

that would happen three hours later

with a serrated knife like the one he owns.

The witnesses leave, we imagine

the two men stay alone,

keep talking,

and the accused lets himself be convinced.

Otherwise, he wouldn't be a man.

And that's where the premeditation begins.

The two men, like everyone else,

know where to find Mrs. Cécile Milik.

They leave the bar,

heading to meet their future victim.

They take Marton's blue 4x4.

Heading to the village square.

Once they arrive at the bench, the accused shows himself to his wife.

She's drunk

and doesn't understand what's happening to her.

She recognizes her husband.

So, she lets herself be carried by him.

There will be no trace of violence

or defense on the poor woman.

They take her near the Van Gogh bridge; it's quiet.

It's deserted at night during this time of year.

An ideal place.

The terrible aftermath, no one sees it.

The physical evidence in the case tells us about it.

The victim is lifted up.

She knows someone means to harm her.

So, she struggles.

There, she tears off

a piece of the thread

from her husband's jacket.

She also scratches him on the neck.

But it's too late.

Roger Marton is behind her.

He holds her with his right arm, giving Nicolas Milik

time to step back.

While holding her, he plunges his blade into her throat and slices it

from right

to left

with a serrated knife with a knuckle duster handle.

The accused drags his dead wife's body

to the abandoned house.

A place

where it won't be easy to find her.

Then, Roger Marton takes the accused back to his home.

He hurries inside.

At his place, he cleans the weapon

with soap.

Like a killer eager to erase

every trace of his crime.

But not well enough.

Because a tiny piece of flesh,

surely the victim’s,

is still there.

He hides his weapon in a bag and goes to bed.

Duty done.

The courage of a drunk.

Before falling into the arms of Morpheus,

he confides in his wife and says to her:

- I did it, damn it. I did it.

Tell me, Mr. Milik, what did he do?

Tidying up?

Did he rest in front of the TV?

No.

You know as well as I do that he killed with you and for you.

Because you are

both the murderers of Mrs. Milik.

The fact that you don't drink doesn't help your case at all.

You consciously accepted

your friend's proposal.

And that night,

the love you claimed to have for your wife

and your children ceased to exist.

Mr. Nicolas Milik is like Mr. Roger Marton.

He is guilty of the murder of Mrs. Cécile Milik.

His act was premeditated.

I am requesting against the accused

a 30-year prison sentence.

Thank you.

Prove it.

Prove your story, Madam Attorney General.

Don't tell me the evidence might support it.

Be rigorous, say it proves it beyond doubt

or stop treating this story as true.

Because there is no incriminating evidence

against my client, there is none.

Nor any motive.

Nothing.

Absolutely nothing indicates that Nicolas Milik,

calm, composed,

Not drinking,

had some reason to act that night.

To risk life imprisonment at the Assizes?

A divorce would have been more favorable to him. Well, divorce

Did you really want to divorce, Mr. Milik?

No

Of course not.

I believe him when he speaks passionately

about the love he had for the mother of his five children.

Let's move on to the material evidence

that the prosecutor tried to present as proof.

She first dismissed my client's testimony

based on a factor,

the apparent and reasonable logic.

The worst enemy of us evening historians of the facts.

This logic, on which the prosecution relies,

is actually just a probability.

I think of that blue thread

lodged under Cécile Milik's fingernail, which

logically was more likely to come from the jacket.

It's less probable that her hand brushed the trousers,

given the described scene.

So what?

Are we going to convict a man for that?

Because it's more probable that?

Are we sure that this thread really comes from the jacket

and was torn off the night of the crime?

Has anyone tested how long a thread can stay under a fingernail?

Who can guarantee here that that night, Cécile Milik,

an hour before the argument, didn't move the jacket

By taking from it what would become

the only proof suggesting that, maybe,

maybe,

Nicolas Milik was there that night,

at the Van Gogh bridge, at 2 a.m.

Look closely at your nails.

Check if there's any dirt hiding there.

Just a tiny bit.

Now,

ask yourself when your finger picked it up.

Morning? Evening? The day before?

I repeat,

logic is the enemy in this room.

It opposes the rigor required

by the word proof.

So,

now, let's move on to this witness, Mr

Mr. Fouque, an antique dealer, so sure of himself,

who claims to have seen three people,

but under what conditions?

Let's settle the fate of his testimony.

It's very fragile.

I'd even say it defies all logic.

How is it possible that the three people he describes

could hear nothing of his car's engine?

And couldn't see him arriving at this deserted place?

In his testimony, he says

that the two people in the back didn't try to hide.

Thirty meters from him.

Strange.

Or if you need a logical explanation,

these two people were drunk.

So much so that they no longer paid attention to what was around them.

But

Nicolas Milik doesn’t drink.

And he wasn’t there!

It was Roger, because it was him,

who shortly after, with his knife,

slit poor Cécile’s throat before fleeing in his 4x4.

Now, I can’t prove it either.

But that fits with what we know,

and I challenge anyone here

to prove to me that it happened otherwise.

Because you have absolutely no evidence.

Before concluding, ladies and gentlemen of the jury,

I want to quote

a magnificent text that I hope will guide you as it guides me.

"The law does not ask judges by what means they have convinced themselves.

It instructs them to question themselves in silence and reflection

and to seek

in the sincerity of their conscience

what effect the evidence has produced on their reason

against the accused,

and the means of his defense.

The law asks them only this one question

"Do you have a firm conviction?"

I’m not even asking you to acquit Mr. Milik out of reasonable doubt,

but because I am certain of his innocence.

Mr. Milik the benefit of the doubt,

but because I am certain of his innocence,

Because nothing in his file indicates otherwise,

because he has always denied it during these three years in detention,

because nothing is inexplicable

if he is innocent.

Mr. Milik is also innocent for another reason.

According to everyone, he was a good father.

He only wanted love for his children.

If there had to be just one reason why he couldn't have

killed their mother, it's that he could never

have wished such harm on them.

Give this father back to his children. Acquit him.

Because it will be just.

Thank you.

Mr. Milik, according to procedure, you have the last word.

Would you like to add anything in your defense?

Yes.

Uh

I miss my wife,

but she won't come back.

And uh

But my children, thank God, are still here.

And uh

they are all I have left.

Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Milik.

The debates are over.

The Court will retire to deliberate.

How long will it take?

Oh, it might be quite long.

- I wanted to say, Counsel, thank you.

Yesterday, I wasn’t feeling well.

Now, you’ve given me a bit of hope.

- Let’s hope the jurors see it your way.

This is the first time we’ve met outdoors.

Notification

It’s the court clerk.

It’s our turn.

- Ladies and gentlemen, the Court.

- The session is resumed, please be seated.

Mr. Milik, please stand.

The Court had to answer two questions.

Is Nicolas Milik guilty of intentional homicide

against his wife, Cécile Milik,

under Article 221-1 of the Penal Code?

If yes,

did Nicolas Milik act with premeditation?

To the first question,

by a majority of at least six votes, the Court answered:

yes.

To the second question,

by a majority of at least six votes, the Court answered:

yes.

Consequently,

Nicolas Milik is declared guilty of these charges.

The Court sentences him to 20 years in prison.

Mr. Milik, you have 10 days to appeal.

The session is adjourned.

- Gentlemen,

gentlemen, wait.

I would like to speak with my client for a moment.

Thank you.

We’re not stopping here, Nicolas.

We’re going to keep going. - No, it’s fine.

We’re stopping everything.

- No, no.

We’re going to appeal. - No.

I’m tired, I’m fed up. I just want to serve my sentence.

You fought well.

20 years isn’t so bad. - No.

Let me defend you on appeal. - No.

You have to forgive me, Counselor.

(I lied to you.)

(I did it.)

(I’m the one who killed her. I killed my wife. That’s it.)

(Roger didn’t do anything, except lend me his knife and come with me.)

(- But why?)

(- I didn’t dare tell you.)

(I didn’t want to disappoint you.)

(- But why did you do it?)

(- Well)

(Before you, no one had ever respected me like that, really.)

(Even Roger.)

(And)

(Never like that.)

(I deserve this sentence. What I did is terrible.)

- Why would you have killed her?

- It's time, we have to go.

- You're not allowed to say that.

- Counsel?

Excuse me.

Can I say a word? - Of course.

- I did everything

to get him acquitted during the deliberations.

- You don't have the right to say that.

- I know. But it's important you know.

Actually, you convinced all the jurors.

- Oh? - We all agreed

that Mr. Milik was innocent.

The president came to see us

and turned the tide the other way.

Everyone was impressed by her.

And listening to her speak,

they all started to doubt.

I'm the only one who didn't change their mind.

I wanted to tell you that I was sorry.

That's it.

- Thank you.

Three years have passed.

My life has gone back to normal.

I kept defending people, with more or less success.

I never forgot that night.

But eventually, I managed to come to terms with it.

I put it aside and found a way to keep inside me

some kind of reservoir of illusions.

Then one day, I got a call from the Arles police,

telling me that a certain Nicolas Milik,

imprisoned in Tarascon

for the murder of his wife, was under investigation.

And that he wanted to see me.

"Thank you for coming, Maître."

"I'm glad to see you again."

"Given the past, I'm not sure I can assist you

in this new case."

"I mean, beyond this meeting."

"I understand your reservations."

"But I promise,

I'll tell you the whole truth."

"What the hell are we doing here?"

"What's this all about?"

"I was very alone, Maître."

At the time you know, before my wife's death.

Very alone.

She was doing nothing.

She had started drinking more and more.

She was out all day.

So one evening,

I don't even remember how it started

I began hugging Elodie.

She's my daughter.

She didn't say anything. So, I did it again.

And it kept going.

I knew it was wrong.

But I was ashamed.

But I felt so alone that well.

It spiraled, and then

Until she told me she didn't want it anymore.

She told me to stop. That shocked me.

It hit me hard.

I apologized. She's my daughter, I love her, so

I apologized so she would understand it was an accident.

That's it.

She promised she wouldn't say anything.

Then I started again with Jade.

Yeah.

Except this time, Cécile caught us.

She saw everything.

She threatened to tell everyone.

Especially since she knew I wanted a divorce.

That's why I couldn't divorce.

She told me she wouldn't say anything

if I left her alone.

If I let her drink

and spend our money, do whatever she wanted.

She took almost everything.

I did the cleaning, the cooking, and took care of the kids.

But

She started dropping hints.

At school, in front of the neighbors.

"You know, Nicolas,"

"he really loves his kids."

"I'm jealous."

I couldn't take it anymore.

That's why it happened.

I had no choice, so I killed her.

Prelude in C minor BWV 999 (Johann Sebastian Bach)

- I was watching him; he had hidden everything from everyone,

starting with me.

From those witnesses who described him as a model father.

From social services who were monitoring the family.

From my colleague on the civil side who had argued

that she heard the children say how much they loved their father.

How much they missed him.

The eternal monstrous conflict of feelings

in the hearts of incest victims.

The Beggar And The Thief (Piers Faccini)