May 23, 2008 – June 19, 2008
Daily
Roman de Gare takes its name from the French term for popular novels sold in train stations, and, indeed, this film's whodunit plot is pure pulp — albeit in the knowing, philosophical way that marks nearly all French film. A flighty beauty gets ditched by her doctor-fiancé in a highway rest area; a hapless stranger (Amelie's Dominique Pinon) offers to drive the damsel; and an acclaimed author anxiously awaits the man and his ghost-writing abilities — all while a serial killer runs rampant in the region. Therein lie all the makings of an excellent thriller, complete with a little rueful wit; no doubt Hollywood will be butchering it into an adaptation apace.
– Lisa Rosman