Solid French cinema- this would be the ultra-short version.
Even though the movie is being categorised as action and a thriller, in reality it is more of a drama and a biopic. Set in the time frame of 1975 to 1981 it details the struggle between the French police and the the mob. What is now commonly known as the French Connection (the way drugs were smuggled from Turkey to Marseille, refined and repacked there and then shipped off to the U.S.), serves as the backdrop for this movie. On the one hand there is the gang of mobsters (hence the name La French) on the other a special task force dealing with organised crime. Pierre Michel, a magistrate attached to this task force, goes all in to battle the current boss 'Tany' Zampa.
But as said, it's not a flashy action flick. Michele is portrayed as a driven, obsessed man - it is implied that he had some gambling problems in the past - who seems to be actually trying to catch the 'bad guys'. During the entirety of the movie his determination is being shown as close to obsession as possible without too much cliché. It is obvious that his obsession will get him into trouble, sooner or later.
The entire main cast does its best to stay focused on portraying 'normal' people- with all the rational and irrational thinking that drives us. Dujardin does well in his role, even though I found some scenes a bit 'too much'. I presume the director wanted to capture as much of the emotional struggle as possible in those scenes. The movie is little over 2 hours, so IMO a few more minutes to elaborate on the emotional stress magistrate Michele was going through, would have served the movie well.
There is some action here and there, but it's neither flashy, nor heroic. It's the simple, realistic depiction of action and some graphic violence, or rather its absence, that adds to the movie. As said before, the movie is more of a drama, more focused on the characters involved and their struggles. It's one of the movies where even the antagonists have some sort of inner emotional cosmos one can actually relate to.
The movie in its entirety is sombre, a bit bleak and some parts (especially the last 10 mins) have almost a cynical undertone to them. In general there are only a few lighter parts. And that all while being filmed in southern France, ie. it's almost sunny all the time- some shots underline this contrast very nicely: Michele and Zampa meet on an outcrop while the sun is slowly setting in the background.
All those little bits and pieces add up to very solid drama; no light fare, to be sure. Give it a go if you're into Eurocinema.
Even though the movie is being categorised as action and a thriller, in reality it is more of a drama and a biopic. Set in the time frame of 1975 to 1981 it details the struggle between the French police and the the mob. What is now commonly known as the French Connection (the way drugs were smuggled from Turkey to Marseille, refined and repacked there and then shipped off to the U.S.), serves as the backdrop for this movie. On the one hand there is the gang of mobsters (hence the name La French) on the other a special task force dealing with organised crime. Pierre Michel, a magistrate attached to this task force, goes all in to battle the current boss 'Tany' Zampa.
But as said, it's not a flashy action flick. Michele is portrayed as a driven, obsessed man - it is implied that he had some gambling problems in the past - who seems to be actually trying to catch the 'bad guys'. During the entirety of the movie his determination is being shown as close to obsession as possible without too much cliché. It is obvious that his obsession will get him into trouble, sooner or later.
The entire main cast does its best to stay focused on portraying 'normal' people- with all the rational and irrational thinking that drives us. Dujardin does well in his role, even though I found some scenes a bit 'too much'. I presume the director wanted to capture as much of the emotional struggle as possible in those scenes. The movie is little over 2 hours, so IMO a few more minutes to elaborate on the emotional stress magistrate Michele was going through, would have served the movie well.
There is some action here and there, but it's neither flashy, nor heroic. It's the simple, realistic depiction of action and some graphic violence, or rather its absence, that adds to the movie. As said before, the movie is more of a drama, more focused on the characters involved and their struggles. It's one of the movies where even the antagonists have some sort of inner emotional cosmos one can actually relate to.
The movie in its entirety is sombre, a bit bleak and some parts (especially the last 10 mins) have almost a cynical undertone to them. In general there are only a few lighter parts. And that all while being filmed in southern France, ie. it's almost sunny all the time- some shots underline this contrast very nicely: Michele and Zampa meet on an outcrop while the sun is slowly setting in the background.
All those little bits and pieces add up to very solid drama; no light fare, to be sure. Give it a go if you're into Eurocinema.