Synopsis: Bernard, an accountant in an upscale jewellery store, suffers from daily psychological abuse by his boss Vendôme. Thanks to his old pal Robert, also victim of harassment by this cruel man, Bernard will toy with the consequence of a well-deserved retaliation at the expense of his boss. However, as not everything is perfect in this world, Bernard will also have to experience the sometimes less pleasant after effects of this ruthless act of revenge.
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Guide de la petite vengeance 8.0

I knew very little about this film going in. I had picked it up solely due to my weakness for Pascale Bussière. The title certainly was a draw, but I don’t know if I would have bothered if not for her; I’m not a huge fan of Québécois cinema – I usualy prefer French.

So I was surprised that this film turned out to be ‘Single White Female’ meets ‘Ocean’s 11’ (or some such caper film). I actually thought that it would be more of a relationship film, character-driven and rooted in dialogue.

Turns out that there is that element, but the film revolves around a robbery at a high-end jewelry store. You see, our lead character works for that store, and his boss is so appaling that he decides to get revenge – which the help of an ex-employee of the store.

But, as one might expect, what should have been a simple affair, a slow vengeance in a “death by a thousand paper cuts” fashion, doesn’t turn out quite as expected. Between his desire to win his ex back and his partner’s motivations, things get messy.

It’s all laced with humour throughout – some of which can be sardonic and may take a few viewings to fully appreciate. So it ends up being a mixture of flavours, somehwere between thriller, drama and comedy, and ‘Guide de la petite vengeance’ manages to weave all the elements together smoothly.

It’s good fun with bite.