''Flic Story'' follows a nine-year pursuit of Emile Buisson through France during the 1940s and 1950s, and illustrates the pursuit as a battle of intellect, focusing on a growing rapport between Buisson and the protagonist Borniche.<ref name=H279/> Deray's humanizing of the characters was a trait used in his other films, and was a popular counter-cliché concept in France during the 1970s.<ref name=H279/>