The set immediately establishes the context for the investigation to come: a remote inn, on a day of heavy snowfall. On the radio, a news bulletin reports a murder; the suspect can be identified by a dark coat, a light scarf and a felt hat. Every guest arrives dressed in exactly this way. The snow falls ever more heavily as an inspector arrives on skis, explaining that he has been dispatched because a notebook found at the scene of the crime — with the inn's address scrawled inside — suggests further murders may be planned. Despite precautions, a cry rings out, and tension mounts with the discovery of Mrs Boyle's lifeless body. Fortunately, Inspector Trotter takes charge.

Won over by the relentless pace of the exchanges and the characters' incessant comings and goings, the director plays on the suspense of this theatrical thriller. She takes pleasure in sowing doubt, drawing attention to details that are falsely innocuous yet deliberately underscored. Everyone is a suspect.

Casting in progress