--- title: "Case 137: the reviews" canonical: "https://film.one/film/case-137/reviews" title_page: "https://film.one/film/case-137" critics_score: 73 critics_reviews: 13 licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL." --- # Case 137 (2025): what the critics said Critics' score 73 from 13 reviews: 9 positive, 4 mixed, 0 negative. Most critics respond favourably to Case 137, praising its sober examination of police misconduct and the investigative work needed to establish responsibility. Léa Drucker’s performance draws the clearest agreement: the reviews repeatedly credit her with giving the investigator authority, complexity and vulnerability. Praise also clusters around the procedural detail, from tracing officers through CCTV footage to making routine enquiries tense through editing, dialogue and varied footage. Several critics find that the restrained approach strengthens the film’s account of institutional obstruction. Reservations concern pace and how far the political critique goes. Some find the investigation gripping throughout; others describe stretches as slow or thin. The Guardian considers the film less challenging than it could be, while Little White Lies finds the later moral debate conventional. The Wrap offers the coolest assessment, judging it competent but inessential. The spread runs from strong endorsement to mixed appreciation, with no wholly negative verdicts. ## Variety — Guy Lodge Fi1m's normalised score 85/100 (inferred from the text). 15 May 2025. Festival review. Lodge finds the film gripping, intelligent, and sharply critical of institutional police misconduct. He particularly praises Léa Drucker’s complex, quietly compelling performance as an investigator confronting a system that obstructs justice. [Read the review](https://variety.com/2025/film/reviews/case-137-review-1236398661/) ## The Hollywood Reporter — Jordan Mintzer Fi1m's normalised score 80/100 (inferred from the text). 16 May 2025. Festival review. Mintzer finds the film a gripping, provocative examination of policing, though its tension sometimes dissipates. He especially praises Léa Drucker’s performance and the carefully staged metro sequence. [Read the review](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-reviews/dossier-137-review-lea-drucker-dominik-moll-1236218737/) ## Time Out — Lou Thomas Rating 4/5. 15 May 2025. The review calls the film a lean, riveting police drama about justice and bias. It singles out Léa Drucker’s performance as superb. [Read the review](https://www.timeout.com/movies/case-137-review-2025) ## IndieWire — Sophie Monks Kaufman Rating B. 15 May 2025. Festival review. The review finds the procedural solid but ambling, with limited vitality. It praises Léa Drucker’s performance and singles out Guslagie Malanda’s simmering screen presence as a contrast to the film’s thinner scenes. [Read the review](https://www.indiewire.com/criticism/movies/dossier-137-review-1235123685/) ## Screen Daily — Tim Grierson Fi1m's normalised score 65/100 (inferred from the text). 15 May 2025. Festival review. The review presents the film as a controlled procedural, with Lea Drucker anchoring it. It singles out Drucker’s performance as the film’s strength. [Read the review](https://www.screendaily.com/reviews/case-137-review-lea-drucker-anchors-dominik-molls-police-corruption-drama/5205041.article) ## The Guardian — Peter Bradshaw Fi1m's normalised score 65/100 (inferred from the text). 15 May 2025. Festival review. Bradshaw finds the film serious and valuable, though somewhat programmatic and ultimately less challenging than it might be. He especially praises its painstaking, forensic account of tracing the police officers through CCTV footage. [Read the review](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2025/may/15/dossier-137-review-tense-gilets-jaunes-thriller-divides-cops-loyalties-over-police-brutality) ## Little White Lies — David Jenkins Rating 3/3/3. 14 October 2026. Jenkins finds the procedural engrossing but not especially transformative, with its later moral debate feeling more conventional. He praises the first half’s close attention to the investigation’s details and tools. [Read the review](https://www.lwlies.com/reviews/case-137) ## The Playlist — Elena Lazic Rating B+. 15 May 2025. Festival review. Lazic finds the film’s restrained procedural style ultimately delivers a satisfying critique of systemic police violence. She especially praises Moll’s skillful use of genre storytelling to reveal a larger political target. [Read the review](https://theplaylist.net/case-137-review-dominik-molls-subdued-police-procedural-has-a-sting-in-its-tail-cannes-20250515/) ## Collider — Jason Gorber Rating 8/10. 25 May 2025. Festival review. Gorber gives the film a strong endorsement, calling it a contemporary classic of French police drama. He especially praises Léa Drucker’s performance and the film’s subtle, documentary-like approach to police work. [Read the review](https://collider.com/case-dossier-137-review/) ## The Skinny — Jamie Dunn Rating ★★★★. 15 October 2026. Dunn gives the film a gripping, clear-eyed verdict, while warning that it offers no easy moment of justice. He praises Moll’s ability to make routine investigative work tense through sharp editing, flinty dialogue and varied footage. [Read the review](https://www.theskinny.co.uk/film/new-releases/case-137) ## Deadline — Stephanie Bunbury Fi1m's normalised score 70/100 (inferred from the text). 15 May 2025. Festival review. Bunbury finds the sober procedural gripping and purposeful, though its slow march toward a deflating finish weakens the impact. She especially praises Léa Drucker’s compelling performance, balancing frosty authority with glimpses of vulnerability. [Read the review](https://deadline.com/2025/05/dossier-137-review-lea-drucker-dominik-moll-cannes-1236399308/) ## Eye for Film — Richard Mowe Fi1m's normalised score 70/100 (inferred from the text). 16 May 2025. Festival review. Mowe finds the film absorbing, though its detailed procedural approach sometimes threatens to bog down. He singles out Léa Drucker’s mesmerising performance as what papers over the cracks. [Read the review](https://www.eyeforfilm.co.uk/review/dossier-137-2025-film-review-by-richard-mowe) ## The Wrap Fi1m's normalised score 55/100 (inferred from the text). 15 May 2025. Festival review. The critic finds the film competent but ultimately inessential. They praise its supporting characters for bringing broader questions of race, class, and public response into the procedural. [Read the review](https://www.thewrap.com/case-137-review-cannes-dominik-moll/) --- © Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Our review: https://film.one/film/case-137.md