Death of a Jester – As the opening episode of Cannes Confidential begins, there is a motorcycle chase and fight before a suspect is apprehended. Camille Delmasse tells Lea Robert why she didn’t wait for backup. When the boss arrives, she tells Camille it is nice she can focus on the job with her domestic troubles. Lea Robert tells Camille good luck for the trial tomorrow. Lea believes the not guilty verdict is already in the bag. Her dad can come back home and they can get their Chief of Police back. A man creates graffiti before posting a video about the big announcement. He is shot and killed moments later. In the morning, Camille goes for a run.

She stops by Andre and says she is feeling confident. At home, she drinks to her dad’s homecoming. Lea calls to tell her about the dead body they have. She is shocked to learn that the victim is Vince. Lea explains he was killed near a new work of art by the Jester. Camille says she’ll be right there. On her way there, she calls Gen to make sure they’re still on for two. Protestors chant “keep art free” at the crime scene. Camille admits she knew Vince who was a bit of a geek. He was one of several people rumored to be the Jester. He was probably killed in the last three or four hours. People thought he was the Jester because his sister Delphine runs the gallery that promotes the Jester. The establishment is called Gallery Nexus.

Delphine has always had an eye for profit and she never really liked Camille. When Lea asks what is going on, Camille says she hasn’t heard from her lawyer yet and something feels off. Camille calls Gen again. At a stop light, she notices Severine talking on her phone so she asks her to put it down. Harry King (Jamie Bamber) pulls up and speaks to Severine. When Severine flips off Camille, she gets mad and floors it. Harry gets in her way causing her to crash into a fire hydrant. Harry stops and tells her about the guy he knows who runs a repair shop. Harry drives away moments later. Camille manages to get the vehicle running for long enough to reach her destination.

She isn’t happy to see Harry there. Then, she sits down with Delphine (Sara Mortensen) to talk to her about Vince’s death. Delphine says Harry came over to look at a piece. Harry says he isn’t a big fan of the Jester’s works, but he couldn’t leave Delphine alone. Delphine doesn’t have any idea why someone would want to kill Vince. Camille asks her about the video and announcement. Delphine claims not to know anything about that. Camille wants to know if Vince was the Jester. When Harry steps away to take a call, Delphine confirms Vince was the Jester. His heart was in the right place and he always had a great eye for an image. Vince wants to be mysterious to create a myth. Harry goes inside and does something on the computer before the dog begins growling at him.

Delphine asks Camille about her dad being the Chief of Police at one point. Ed (Vincent Londez) arrives and interrupts their conversation. Camille learns that Edouard Pchette runs the MJC. Harry comes out with the dog and it is no longer growling at him. He thinks it could do with a game of fetch. After Harry leaves, Ed confirms there was a campaign against the MJC’s closure. Ed says yes and Vince was an avid supporter. Luc Verin is buying the venue. He is hell-bent on turning it into a rip-off concert venue. Vince hated the idea. Philippe gets a visit from Genevieve who is told it has already been decided. He asks her not to tell Margaux and Camille yet. After signing the paper in front of him, Philippe says she has done everything so she can keep Camille out of this.

At the station, Camille tells Lea that Vince had a few enemies after all and Delphine claims he was the Jester. They talk about the people who would benefit with the Jester dead. Harry goes through emails and other things he got from the computer earlier. Ramzy shows surveillance video of the shooting to Camille and Lea. Camille suspects the killer knew where the cameras were located. She wants to speak to the new owner Luc Verin. Gen finally gets in touch with Camille. Father Placid tells Harry that he hasn’t been to the monastery lately. Harry says he had a brief run-in with the law. Placid talks to him about fishing. Camille tells Lea that they postponed her dad’s trial. Camille says she needs to talk to him and find out what is going on before Nina Le Blanc calls.

They notice that Luc Verin has an expensive vehicle. They go inside and confront Luc Verin who says they’ll turn this crap hole into a state-of-the-art concert venue. He admits he goes way back with Camille’s father. Luc heard about Vince being an opponent of his takeover, but he never met him in person. Luc is sorry for what happened to Vince, but he insists it isn’t his problem. Once he leaves, Lea says they need to check Luc’s alibi from last night. Harry comes in to see Ed. Camille accuses him of hiding something. Harry says the word going around is that Vince Devilly was about to leave the country. When she asks how he knows that, Harry recommends asking Delphine. Ed attacks Luc outside. Lea tries to intervene only to get hit as well.

Ed flees the scene. Camille wants to chase him, but her vehicle will not start. She wants to take Harry’s motorcycle. Harry eventually gives her the keys, but he decides to tag along on the back. They manage to catch up with the vehicle before Camille shoots the tire out. Camille handcuffs Ed and asks why he attacked Luc. Ed thinks he killed Vince. He was obsessed with silencing the Jester. Ed reveals Vince had come up with a plan and they were going to save MJC. Ed is put in the vehicle. Camille asks Harry if he always sleeps with gallery owners. He thinks she is jealous. Camille asks what his relationship with Delphine is. Harry says Ed is madly in love with Delphine. He says he has an occasional business interest with Delphine.

Harry leaves on his bike. Camille calls Lea and learns that Luc’s alibi checks out. Camille learns that Vince slept on the floor of the MJC by all accounts. She wonders why Vince was leaving the country. They still have no trace of the gun or the missing phone. Camille thinks she’ll have another chat with Delphine. Lea is told that Philippe Delmasse’s trial has been postponed because he has pleaded guilty to all charges. The former chief is going to prison for a long time and it is going to impact Camille. Nina hopes it won’t drag Lea down with her. Lea is warned not to stand too close to the flame. Harry and Camille go to the gallery. Camille eventually separates from him to speak to Delphine.

Camille just checked the Jester art prices online and they’ve gone up. She asks if Vince was leaving the country, but Delphine isn’t eager to answer that question. As Camille leaves, she asks Harry to tell her what he knows about the Jester. Harry says anonymity was his superpower and he was willing to give it away so he wasn’t painting for money. Later, Lea tells Camille what Nina told her. When their mom got sick, their dad promised to make everything okay. Lea argues that it isn’t over, but Camille says otherwise since he has pleaded guilty. Harry jumps in the car and interrupts their moment. He finds it odd that he can’t find Delphine anywhere. Harry also reveals that she is heavily in debt because the whole lifestyle is expensive.

Camille wants to split up and look for her. Even though Harry is told to wait, he decides to look around. Harry finds what appears to be Jester artworks. It has a business card on it with Vincent’s name and a number. Harry decides to call it. Delphine approaches and asks who he is calling. She pulls a gun on him and tells him to step out. Delphine accuses him of using her to steal the paintings. Harry says he found her unpacked Jester pieces, but she claims she caught the thief. Camille arrives and tells Delphine to put down the gun. She asks if it was because Vince wanted out. She wonders if he was selling everything and leaving her with nothing. Lea arrives as well. Harry manages to grab Delphine’s purse so they can check Vince’s phone.

When they check the phone, the video shows Delphine shooting Vince. Delphine says she loved Vince, but he tried to destroy everything she worked so hard for. When she tries to shoot Camille, Lea shoots Delphine first. Later, Delphine is put in an ambulance and seems okay. Everything was on Vince’s phone. He bought a ticket to India. He was going to sell everything and donate all proceeds to charity. Camilla asks Harry about being an art dabbler and lock picker. She believes he is an opportunist. Harry thinks they all are. That night, Camille meets Margaux who shows her a letter that Gen gave her. Camille says he is innocent and he’ll be okay. Margaux refuses to let Camille comfort her.

Camille receives a call saying the Triumph she was looking for is parked down at Port Canto. Harry looks at a picture of a young girl. He remembers his daughter calling his name while being held back. When he leaves the boat, Camille gets on it and begins looking around. She finds a passport in the name of Vince Traynor and another in another name. Once Harry comes back, he finds Camille pointing a gun at him. She wants to know who he is. Camille says his fingerprints will show them everything they need to know. Harry begins talking about her dad and says he knows why he changed his plea. Two years ago, Anne-Marie Blanchet was accused of stealing millions of euros from the government. She changed her plea on the eve of her trial.

Someone got to her, but she still has three children. Harry says her father decided to stay inside to protect her. Although Harry seems to know who is responsible, he won’t tell Camille who it is. Harry thinks he can get her father back if she forgets this and he helps her. Camille agrees.

 

Cannes Confidential Review

The opening episode of Cannes Confidential felt a little like an American series in the beginning with the over-the-top action and silliness of everything. The performances are decent enough and Jamie Bamber and Lucie Lucas may be a dynamic duo as the story develops. There just wasn’t enough cohesion or excitement to make the first episode great though.

The script is a little thin considering how the investigation in the first episode played out. There really wasn’t an investigation and the way it came to a conclusion was pretty unrealistic and anticlimactic. Truthfully, Cannes Confidential doesn’t even seem to be trying to be realistic.

The believability problem may not be an issue if the story manages to become more interesting in future episodes. It was an issue here though. The opening episode scores a 5 out of 10. Recaps of Cannes Confidential can be found on Reel Mockery here. Find out how to support our independent work at this link. Learn more about advertising on Reel Mockery here.