Hygiène de l'assassin
Encyclopedia
Hygiene and the Assassin is the first novel of the Belgian novelist Amélie Nothomb
. It was published in 1992 by Albin Michel. The novel is written almost entirely in dialogue.
laureate. In a locked room full of mysteries, she will challenge the odious misogyny of Tach and, as the questions and answers wear on, confront Tach with the demons of his former life.
as Prétextat Tach, Barbara Schulz
as Nina, as well as Catherine Hiegel, Sophie Broustal, Jean Prat
and Richard Gotainer.
There are some differences between the novel and the film. The film omits the entire chapter where four journalists are expelled by the writer and adds a police investigation. Prétextat Tach is less disgusting than in the book. A character, left for dead in the novel, has survived in the film.
Amélie Nothomb
Amélie Nothomb is a Belgian writer who writes in French.- Biography :Amélie Nothomb was born in Kobe, Japan to Belgian diplomats. She lived there until she was five years old, and then subsequently lived in China, New York, Bangladesh, Burma, Coventry and Laos...
. It was published in 1992 by Albin Michel. The novel is written almost entirely in dialogue.
Plot
The famous novelist Prétextat Tach is stricken by "Elzenveiverplatz syndrome" (an imaginary syndrome invented by the author), a cancer of the cartilage, and has only two more months to live. Almost immediately, many journalists rush to interview Tach for a scoop. However, after the first few interviews, the reader realizes that Tach is an obese and obnoxious misanthrope of the worst kind: acerbic, intolerant, a provocateur and a misogynist, who cannot tolerate any questions about his private life and has the audacity to turn the interviews into a cesspool of disgust for his interviewers. Thus, all the interviews fall short, until a relatively unknown journalist becomes the latest victim of the novelist. Unlike all the other journalists before, however, this journalist is a woman, so that the interview quickly takes the form of a confrontation between the journalist and the Nobel literature prizeNobel Prize in Literature
Since 1901, the Nobel Prize in Literature has been awarded annually to an author from any country who has, in the words from the will of Alfred Nobel, produced "in the field of literature the most outstanding work in an ideal direction"...
laureate. In a locked room full of mysteries, she will challenge the odious misogyny of Tach and, as the questions and answers wear on, confront Tach with the demons of his former life.
Film adaptation
The novel was adapted for film by François Ruggieri in 1999. It starred Jean YanneJean Yanne
Jean Yanne is the artist name of Jean Gouyé, born the 18 July 1933 in Les Lilas who died the 23 May 2003 in Morsains...
as Prétextat Tach, Barbara Schulz
Barbara Schulz
Barbara Schulz is a French actress who won the Prix Suzanne Bianchetti in 2001. She was nominated for the César Award for Most Promising Actress for the 1999 film La Dilettante....
as Nina, as well as Catherine Hiegel, Sophie Broustal, Jean Prat
Jean Prat
Jean Prat was French rugby union footballer. He was awarded the Légion d'honneur in 1959. He played over 50 times for France and is a member of both the International Rugby Hall of Fame and IRB Hall of Fame, being inducted in 2001 and 2011 respectively...
and Richard Gotainer.
There are some differences between the novel and the film. The film omits the entire chapter where four journalists are expelled by the writer and adds a police investigation. Prétextat Tach is less disgusting than in the book. A character, left for dead in the novel, has survived in the film.