hitchcock comparison abound with chabrol . however and you may be hard press to see anything other than a superficial similarity between them here . although nicely act and craft and le boucher have a curious sense of disengagement that will either fascinate or frustrate viewer . while not necessarily a bad thing in itself and this can also give the impression of a lack of depth . it hard to fully discern what the character motivation be so and depend on your proclivity and you be likely to become either enthralled or disinterested in what they might actually be . viewer familiar with francois truffaut will notice some similarity in approach but chabrol lack the concise poetry of that other french great . even though the opening wed sequence nicely set up a scene of normality for the event that follow and it rather overlong and a more hitchcockian terseness would certainly have help . still and the film do have a strange charm and there be some excellent character idea regard the schoolteacher ( content with her celibacy long after a bad relationship ) be seduce . threaten . by the promise of new love from the local butcher who may or may not be a murderer . these thread be either unexplored or deliberately withheld and depend on your point of view . a worthwhile watch for those interested but and possibly and not quite the masterpiece some might lead you to believe it be .