Monsieur Hire

Hire is a bachelor who works as a tailor and shuns human contact. He watches the world from his window and finds more fascination than disgust in the people he observes, especially a young woman named Alice across the building. His evenings are filled with quiet routines and a growing fixation.

Alice arrives in the building opposite and never closes her blinds, becoming Hire's constant focus from afar. He studies her routine with almost clinical precision, yet he keeps his distance. The seed of love is planted in him, though he remains socially closed off.

A dead young woman is found nearby, and Hire witnesses Émile washing blood from his raincoat and concealing a handbag. He chooses silence over reporting the crime, believing that keeping quiet will protect Alice from suspicion. The police will soon intercede, turning Hire's quiet life upside down.

The inspector starts his inquiry and tries to trick and intimidate Hire into confessing to murder. Hire remains tight-lipped, resisting the pressure to speak and choosing loyalty to Alice over his own safety. The investigation tightens around him as the case unfolds.

While watching Alice one night, a flash of lightning briefly reveals Hire's staring face to her. She is at first horrified, then intrigued, and she engineers a meeting on the landing outside his flat. Hire is too embarrassed to acknowledge her directly.

The next evening, Alice looks back openly and indicates she is coming over. When she arrives, Hire initially rejects her advances, overwhelmed by emotion and fear. Yet the possibility of connection lingers, nudging him toward engagement.

They eventually arrange to meet at the railway station restaurant, where Hire confesses his love for Alice. He tells her of a small house in Switzerland that could separate them from Émile and the investigation. The plan is to flee together and start anew.

Hire buys two train tickets and hands one to Alice, hoping to ensure her escape with him. He writes a letter to the police inspector denouncing Émile, attempting to expose the real murderer and clear himself in advance. The gesture shows his willingness to take action, even if it endangers him.

At the station, Alice fails to appear as promised, leaving Hire bewildered and alone. He returns to his apartment, trying to interpret the delay and the now-increasing consequences of their choices. The anticipation of a new life crumbles into uncertainty.

The inspector arrives with Alice, who has planted the murdered woman's handbag among Hire's belongings to trap him. Hire realizes he is caught, his plan to escape collapsing around him. He makes a break for freedom, but the pursuit ends disastrously.

In the struggle to flee, Hire reaches the roof and falls to his death. The inspector only later reads Hire's letter and discovers Émile's bloodstained raincoat, realizing the truth comes too late. The tragedy exposes the depth of Hire's loneliness and his desperate bid to protect Alice.