Set in colonial Africa, 1938, Coup de Torchon is a black comedy and a gritty, disturbing parable; “it's the only way to speak about humiliation, racism and power,” says director Bertrand Tavernier. Philippe Noiret calls on the ambiguities of his demeanor to portray the film's dubious hero, who represents the entire police force in a sleepy Senegalese village where he is cuckolded by his wife (Stephane Audran), taunted by the natives, beaten by thugs and fellow officials alike, and generally considered an annoyance. Only his mistress (Isabelle Huppert) gives him a measure of respect. Coup de Torchon follows the emergence of this weak-chinned, Walter Mitty-type when he finally enacts his fantasies. Deciding to clean up the town and avenge his personal grudges at the same time, he proves himself to be the most clear-thinking madman in a thoroughly corrupt world. Coup de Torchon is, purposely, the very antithesis of the typical '30s melodrama set in the colonies; along with cinematographer Pierre William Glenn, Tavernier has found a perspective that jars the viewer into complicity. “Coup de Torchon is a film where a lot of people spy on each other,” the director notes, “and I wanted the camera to have the same feeling” (quoted in an interview with Stephen Harvey, reprinted in Datebook, 2/6/83).