A retired super-spy is haunted by memories of a mission gone wrong in Reflection in a Dead Diamond, which competed at this year’s Berlin International Film Festival and releases in Prague cinemas this weekend (and with English subtitles at Edison Filmhub) after premiering at the recent French Film Festival. This note-perfect pastiche of the sleazy 1960s Eurospy thrillers that became popular in the wake of James Bond films—and especially Mario Bava’s Danger: Diabolik, based on the Italian comic—will utterly confound viewers coming in blind, but stick with it: a tangible, semi-coherent narrative does eventually emerge.
Reflection in a Dead Diamond is the latest feature from the filmmaking team of Hélène Cattet and Bruno Forzani, who have made a career out of recapturing the vibes of 1960s-70s Italian cinema: previous features Amer and The Strange Color of Your Body’s Tears were both inspired by Dario Argento-style giallo, while Let the Corpses Tan referenced spaghetti westerns. While each of their previous films have been praised for their visuals, the detached storytelling has prevented exposure outside of the festival circuit.
But they’ve gotten progressively more advanced in each outing, and this one—eight years since their last—represents their most accomplished film yet. While the fractured narrative, split between multiple timelines and sequences that may or may not be real, doesn’t betray the duo’s vision, it comes together in ways that feel both playful and thoughtful, showcasing a care for this world that extends beyond pure craft.
1970s Italian poliziotteschi star Fabio Testi stars in Reflection in a Dead Diamond as John Diman, a retired spy living out his days sipping martinis on the beaches of a luxury resort on the French Riviera. Glimpses of a woman sunbathing topless remind him of an old case; when the woman goes missing, he takes it upon himself to investigate. Could there be a connection to his previous case?
Much of Reflection in a Dead Diamond unfolds in flashback, as John (Yannick Renier, perfectly cast as a young Testi) is tasked with monitoring a wealthy oil baron Markus Strand (Koen De Bouw). He works with a female agent (Céline Camara) who seduces Strand, and wears a dress made of shimmering silver discs—each one records a short video left behind for John as a clue. The mission goes disastrously wrong for reasons that aren’t immediately clear—but may involve a cat burglar-assassin dubbed Serpentik (played by Thi Mai Nguyen and others) who tears up a bar in one of the films most shocking scenes.
Or something like that. The first half of Reflection of a Dead Diamond is not told in comprehensible terms but rather explodes on the screen in a kaleidoscope of fantastic visuals, many of which leave an unforgettable impression. There’s the classic Bond intro, in which John eliminates targets in silhouette, their wounds morphing into geysers of jewels; fractured irises; pieces of faces that litter the beach; and various bodies covered in leather, oil, diamonds, and blood.
This is all a perfect pastiche of Italian films from the era, right down to the dialogue and dubbing, which always feels just off. Every pretty-as-a-picture shot is its own little reference, from the ultra-wide Sergio Leone closeups to slow zooms and dizzying pans across the pattern on the hotel carpet. For many, Reflection in a Dead Diamond will be indistinguishable from the real thing.
Whether the real thing is your thing is another matter: despite the fantastic visuals, the lack of any kind of comprehensible storyline will be enough to turn off most viewers. But something clicks halfway through with the introduction of the rogues’ gallery of villains. There’s Serpentik—who is clad in leather from head to toe, and conceals her identity through a never-ending parade of Mission: Impossible masks that would make The Naked Gun proud—and, briefly, others including Amphibik, Atomik, and Hypnotik—whose power is making her victims believe they are watching a movie. They only come out of it when they see “Fin.”
It’s around this point that we realize Reflection in a Dead Diamond is playing with us in ways that aren’t just referential. Figuring out exactly what’s going on here—and there is a clear narrative that both illuminates and reframes all the stylistic excess—makes the second half of the movie a lot more compelling than the first, and elevates it above Cattet and Forzani’s previous work.
Reflection in a Dead Diamond is a dazzling, kaleidoscopic homage to 1960s Eurospy cinema, blending outrageous visuals with meticulous craft. While its fractured narrative and dizzying stylistic flourishes may challenge viewers at first, the film ultimately rewards patience, revealing unexpected depth to the story that highlights Cattet and Forzani’s evolution as filmmakers. This visually intoxicating, thought-provoking ride is, for the right audience, worth its weight in diamonds.
