Maïwenn on Louis Garrel: "I chose Louis because I wanted him to bring his poetic side, his offbeat side." Photo: Anne-Katrin Titze
In Maïwenn's My King (Mon Roi), co-written with Etienne Comar (Haute Cuisine), Vincent Cassel, ever more charming, sinister, and unpredictable, as Georgio, morphs before your eyes on screen. And that says a lot when you remember him as Jean-François Richet's shape-shifting Jacques Mesrine or the wild Otto Gross in David Cronenberg's A Dangerous Method. Standing Tall director Emmanuelle Bercot is Tony, an independent, educated, attractive woman, who falls utterly and completely in love with him.
Louis Garrel: "If I put myself into the skin of Vincent Cassel, as in the skin of John Malkovich …" Photo: Anne-Katrin Titze
The two have the lighthearted bond of Myrna Loy and William Powell until suspicions cloud the skies as they did for Joan Fontaine when she realizes...
In Maïwenn's My King (Mon Roi), co-written with Etienne Comar (Haute Cuisine), Vincent Cassel, ever more charming, sinister, and unpredictable, as Georgio, morphs before your eyes on screen. And that says a lot when you remember him as Jean-François Richet's shape-shifting Jacques Mesrine or the wild Otto Gross in David Cronenberg's A Dangerous Method. Standing Tall director Emmanuelle Bercot is Tony, an independent, educated, attractive woman, who falls utterly and completely in love with him.
Louis Garrel: "If I put myself into the skin of Vincent Cassel, as in the skin of John Malkovich …" Photo: Anne-Katrin Titze
The two have the lighthearted bond of Myrna Loy and William Powell until suspicions cloud the skies as they did for Joan Fontaine when she realizes...
- 8/12/2016
- by Anne-Katrin Titze
- eyeforfilm.co.uk
Miami Blues: Riches’ Sophomore Effort Back Pedals
At its core, perhaps The Strongest Man could best be described as a character study concerning one man finding his voice and coming into his own. Except, we never really get to learn terribly too much about him, despite an overabundance of omnisciently shared inner thoughts. This sophomore effort of director Kenny Riches attempts to convey an alternative perspective in its depiction of growing up in the Us with immigrant parents, at least in what we’re accustomed to in these types of films about adolescent minded adults riding the fine line between fun and annoying. But the film’s tone fluctuates between buddy comedy, immigrant story, classist critique, character odyssey, and ultimately, romance, to the degree where none of these elements end satisfactorily.
Beef (Robert Lorie) works in construction with his best bud Conan (Paul Chamberlain). They’ve been friends since they were youths,...
At its core, perhaps The Strongest Man could best be described as a character study concerning one man finding his voice and coming into his own. Except, we never really get to learn terribly too much about him, despite an overabundance of omnisciently shared inner thoughts. This sophomore effort of director Kenny Riches attempts to convey an alternative perspective in its depiction of growing up in the Us with immigrant parents, at least in what we’re accustomed to in these types of films about adolescent minded adults riding the fine line between fun and annoying. But the film’s tone fluctuates between buddy comedy, immigrant story, classist critique, character odyssey, and ultimately, romance, to the degree where none of these elements end satisfactorily.
Beef (Robert Lorie) works in construction with his best bud Conan (Paul Chamberlain). They’ve been friends since they were youths,...
- 6/26/2015
- by Nicholas Bell
- IONCINEMA.com
One Wild Moment
Director: Jean-Francois Richet // Writers: Lisa Azuelos, Claude Berri (original film), Jean-Francois Richet
Jean-Francois Richet won a Cesar for his 1996 debut, Inner City, but snagged international attention for his Us remake of John Carpenter’s Assault on Precinct 13 back in 2005 before directing his more notable exploration of the French gangster Jacques Mesrine, which starred Vincent Cassel in a pair of 2008 titles. This coming year will see Richet unveiling a Mel Gibson headlined film, Blood Father, but we’re more interested in his remake of Claude Berri’s 1977 film here known as One Wild Moment, starring Cassel and Francois Cluzet as friends that take their teenage daughters on vacation, though one of them has an indiscreet liaison with the other’s kid. Sounds fantastically uncomfortable.
Cast: Vincent Cassel, Francois Cluzet
Producer: La Petite Reine’s Thomas Langmann (The Search)
U.S. Distributor: Rights Available.
Release Date: We’re...
Director: Jean-Francois Richet // Writers: Lisa Azuelos, Claude Berri (original film), Jean-Francois Richet
Jean-Francois Richet won a Cesar for his 1996 debut, Inner City, but snagged international attention for his Us remake of John Carpenter’s Assault on Precinct 13 back in 2005 before directing his more notable exploration of the French gangster Jacques Mesrine, which starred Vincent Cassel in a pair of 2008 titles. This coming year will see Richet unveiling a Mel Gibson headlined film, Blood Father, but we’re more interested in his remake of Claude Berri’s 1977 film here known as One Wild Moment, starring Cassel and Francois Cluzet as friends that take their teenage daughters on vacation, though one of them has an indiscreet liaison with the other’s kid. Sounds fantastically uncomfortable.
Cast: Vincent Cassel, Francois Cluzet
Producer: La Petite Reine’s Thomas Langmann (The Search)
U.S. Distributor: Rights Available.
Release Date: We’re...
- 1/5/2015
- by Nicholas Bell
- IONCINEMA.com
Mel Gibson has become attached to Blood Father.
The Hollywood star is in talks to star in the action thriller, reports Deadline.
Blood Father, directed by Jean-Francois Richet and written by Peter Craig, is described as a Taken-style movie about an ex-con who reunites with his estranged, wayward 16-year old daughter, and who must protect her from drug dealers attempting to kill her.
The project will start production in May in New Mexico.
Richet previously helmed the 2008 movie Mesrine about the French gangster Jacques Mesrine.
Gibson's classic movie Mad Max has been revamped with Tom Hardy in the title role. Gibson will not be making a cameo in the reboot.
In the last few years, Gibson has starred in Machete Kills, Get the Gringo and The Beaver. He will appear in the third Expendables movie.
The Hollywood star is in talks to star in the action thriller, reports Deadline.
Blood Father, directed by Jean-Francois Richet and written by Peter Craig, is described as a Taken-style movie about an ex-con who reunites with his estranged, wayward 16-year old daughter, and who must protect her from drug dealers attempting to kill her.
The project will start production in May in New Mexico.
Richet previously helmed the 2008 movie Mesrine about the French gangster Jacques Mesrine.
Gibson's classic movie Mad Max has been revamped with Tom Hardy in the title role. Gibson will not be making a cameo in the reboot.
In the last few years, Gibson has starred in Machete Kills, Get the Gringo and The Beaver. He will appear in the third Expendables movie.
- 3/29/2014
- Digital Spy
Longtime couple Monica Bellucci and Vincent Cassel are divorcing, their reps confirmed Monday.
The pair, who met on the set of French film "The Apartment" in 1996, have been married for 14 years and have two daughters. Bellucci, best known stateside as Persephone in the "Matrix" sequels, had previously spoken out about the state of her marriage, saying she'd prefer to have respect and loyalty in her union than simply sexual faithfulness.
"In [a deeper partnership], passion stays, but more important is confidence, respect, knowing a man is not just loyal in a sex way, but that they will be there for you. That is more important than just fidelity," the 48-year-old Italian actress and model told The London Times in 2011. "It would be ridiculous to ask [fidelity] of him if I hadn't been there for two months. You can't ask such things as who has he been seeing, what has he been up to? It...
The pair, who met on the set of French film "The Apartment" in 1996, have been married for 14 years and have two daughters. Bellucci, best known stateside as Persephone in the "Matrix" sequels, had previously spoken out about the state of her marriage, saying she'd prefer to have respect and loyalty in her union than simply sexual faithfulness.
"In [a deeper partnership], passion stays, but more important is confidence, respect, knowing a man is not just loyal in a sex way, but that they will be there for you. That is more important than just fidelity," the 48-year-old Italian actress and model told The London Times in 2011. "It would be ridiculous to ask [fidelity] of him if I hadn't been there for two months. You can't ask such things as who has he been seeing, what has he been up to? It...
- 8/26/2013
- by Katie Roberts
- Moviefone
★★★★☆ The English translation of French maestro Jacques Rivette's debut feature Paris nous appartient (1962) is "Paris belongs to us". It could also have easily been the title of his 1981 oddball offering Le Pont du Nord. Coveted by cinephiles for years, this Masters of Cinema rerelease is most welcome. It's a magical work of blazing intelligence and imagination which sees Paris as a labyrinth full of hidden narratives and emotional fault lines. At just over two hours, it's a relatively short film for Rivette, but its rambling structure lets him pack a lot in; from the post-68 French mindset to generations in transition.
Le Pont du Nord follows an enigmatic treasure hunt undertaken by Marie and Baptiste, played by real-life mother and daughter duo Bulle and Pascale Ogier respectively (the latter would go on to win the Best Actress award at the 1984 Venice Film Festival). After being released from prison for involvement in a bank robbery,...
Le Pont du Nord follows an enigmatic treasure hunt undertaken by Marie and Baptiste, played by real-life mother and daughter duo Bulle and Pascale Ogier respectively (the latter would go on to win the Best Actress award at the 1984 Venice Film Festival). After being released from prison for involvement in a bank robbery,...
- 7/30/2013
- by CineVue UK
- CineVue
The Monk (Le Moine)
Directed by Dominik Moll
Written by Dominik Moll and Anne-Louise Trividic, from the novel by Matthew Lewis
France, 2011
Dominik Moll’s The Monk is so redolent with Gothic gloom, overweening piety and suppressed lust that it’s almost in danger of self-combusting. It’s held together by a towering performance from Vincent Cassel, who recently played French gangster Jacques Mesrine, and seems to exude menace without even trying.
From the moment a baby is left to be pecked by crows outside a Capuchin monastery in Spain, you know we’re in very dark territory. Despite an ominous birthmark on his shoulder, the unfortunate boy is taken in and raised by the monks. Ambrosio grows up to be a man of unimpeachable virtue and religious zeal and a beacon of hope for worshippers like beautiful young Antonia (Joséphine Japy). But things start to unravel when Ambrosio ignores...
Directed by Dominik Moll
Written by Dominik Moll and Anne-Louise Trividic, from the novel by Matthew Lewis
France, 2011
Dominik Moll’s The Monk is so redolent with Gothic gloom, overweening piety and suppressed lust that it’s almost in danger of self-combusting. It’s held together by a towering performance from Vincent Cassel, who recently played French gangster Jacques Mesrine, and seems to exude menace without even trying.
From the moment a baby is left to be pecked by crows outside a Capuchin monastery in Spain, you know we’re in very dark territory. Despite an ominous birthmark on his shoulder, the unfortunate boy is taken in and raised by the monks. Ambrosio grows up to be a man of unimpeachable virtue and religious zeal and a beacon of hope for worshippers like beautiful young Antonia (Joséphine Japy). But things start to unravel when Ambrosio ignores...
- 10/31/2011
- by Susannah
- SoundOnSight
Each week within this column we strive to pair the latest in theatrical releases to the worthwhile movies streaming online via Netflix Instant Watch. This week we look at alternatives to A Good Old Fashioned Orgy, Shark Night 3D & The Debt.
This week theaters strive to scintillate with sharks, spies and sex! Can’t get enough of monstrous sea-beasts, captivating thrillers, and over-sexed comedians? Well we’ve got you covered with a bevvy of titles sure to delight and disturb!
A group of thirtysomethings celebrate the end of summer with an orgy. Jason Sudeikis, Leslie Bibb, Nick Kroll, Will Forte and Martin Starr star.
You like a little kink with your comedy?
Party Down (2009) Yup. I’m recommending Party Down again. Besides being one of the best comedy series of the last decade, this short-lived sitcom also starred Martin Starr and had an orgy themed episode in season 2. Also streaming is that episode’s inspiration,...
This week theaters strive to scintillate with sharks, spies and sex! Can’t get enough of monstrous sea-beasts, captivating thrillers, and over-sexed comedians? Well we’ve got you covered with a bevvy of titles sure to delight and disturb!
A group of thirtysomethings celebrate the end of summer with an orgy. Jason Sudeikis, Leslie Bibb, Nick Kroll, Will Forte and Martin Starr star.
You like a little kink with your comedy?
Party Down (2009) Yup. I’m recommending Party Down again. Besides being one of the best comedy series of the last decade, this short-lived sitcom also starred Martin Starr and had an orgy themed episode in season 2. Also streaming is that episode’s inspiration,...
- 9/1/2011
- by jpraup@gmail.com (thefilmstage.com)
- The Film Stage
Chicago – Just as Steven Soderbergh’s “Che” and Olivier Assayas’ “Carlos” recounted the true tale of a controversial revolutionary over the span of at least two theatrically released pictures, Jean-François Richet’s 2008 double feature “Mesrine” stages the jaw-dropping amount of robberies and prison escapes committed by its titular French gangster. His resumé is impressive, but his life makes for rather redundant drama.
Though Jacques Mesrine was a member of the French Army during the Algerian War and even dabbled in the Quebec Liberation Front, he appears to have been a much more shallow figure than some have claimed, if this film is of any indication. One of his kidnapped victims makes the valid point that if Mesrine truly were a revolutionary, he would’ve taken the lives of his enemies rather than their money.
Blu-Ray Rating: 3.0/5.0
Even Mesrine’s partners become increasingly skeptical, particularly Charlie Bauer, who argues that the...
Though Jacques Mesrine was a member of the French Army during the Algerian War and even dabbled in the Quebec Liberation Front, he appears to have been a much more shallow figure than some have claimed, if this film is of any indication. One of his kidnapped victims makes the valid point that if Mesrine truly were a revolutionary, he would’ve taken the lives of his enemies rather than their money.
Blu-Ray Rating: 3.0/5.0
Even Mesrine’s partners become increasingly skeptical, particularly Charlie Bauer, who argues that the...
- 4/6/2011
- by adam@hollywoodchicago.com (Adam Fendelman)
- HollywoodChicago.com
This Week in DVD & Blu-ray is a column that compiles all the latest info regarding new DVD and Blu-ray releases, sales, and exclusive deals from stores including Target, Best Buy and Fry’s. Black Swan Darren Aronofsky doesn't want you to experience joy or happiness. He wants to devastate you. He wants to punish you as he does his characters, fully immersing you in every dreary facet of their world as it collapses around them. And he is really, really good at it. Aronofsky has always shown a fascination with the degeneration of the body and mind, finding its limits when tested against paranoia, addiction, disease and giant planks of wood covered in nails and barbed wire. It's amusing then, that his most horrifying exercise in body horror would be a wildly operatic melodrama about ballet. In Black Swan, you are not treated as an observer to Natalie Portman's...
- 3/29/2011
- by Adam Quigley
- Slash Film
If a poll were conducted to determine the best French actors working today the odds are quite good that Vincent Cassel would rank fairly high. He’s incredibly talented, has a range that moves easily between drama, suspense, and comedy, and he’s pretty fearless with his performances. And that’s not code for how easily compelled he is to show off his phallic pastry. His most recent triumph is the two-part epic crime sage Mesrine. It tracks the spectacular rise and bloody fall of one of France’s most celebrated villains, Jacques Mesrine. The first film, Killer Instinct, traced his move from a harsh turn with the French military to the even crueler criminal underworld, but part two (Public Enemy #1) picks up the action and drama in the final decade of his life. The seventies see him robbing banks, getting arrested, escaping from prison, shagging Ludivine Sagnier, and more. And...
- 3/28/2011
- by Rob Hunter
- FilmSchoolRejects.com
The Freebie Rivaling the similarities between No Strings Attached and the upcoming Friends With Benefits, it might come as no surprise that the premise for this week's Hall Pass has been used before -- as recently as in the little-seen 2010 Sundance alum The Freebie. But please, don't mistake The Freebie for a comedy. The film treats this exchange like it's a big deal. Because it is.
The film follows a couple that has hit such a rut in their relationship that their bedroom activities are limited to crossword puzzle races. So, naturally, they grant each other a night off from their marriage in hopes that it reignites the romantic fire they once had.
As a mumblecore film, its desired effect is that of real-life unfolding right before your eyes. And it works -- in large part to the way director/star Katie Aselton keeps the outcome of this night a mystery to us,...
The film follows a couple that has hit such a rut in their relationship that their bedroom activities are limited to crossword puzzle races. So, naturally, they grant each other a night off from their marriage in hopes that it reignites the romantic fire they once had.
As a mumblecore film, its desired effect is that of real-life unfolding right before your eyes. And it works -- in large part to the way director/star Katie Aselton keeps the outcome of this night a mystery to us,...
- 2/25/2011
- by Kevin Blumeyer
- Rope of Silicon
This Week in DVD & Blu-ray is a column that compiles all the latest info regarding new DVD and Blu-ray releases, sales, and exclusive deals from stores including Target, Best Buy and Fry’s. Due Date (Blu-ray available as 'Blu-ray only' and 'Blu-ray + DVD + Digital Copy') I wasn't nearly as impressed by The Hangover as the rest of the world seemed to be, nor was I as dismayed by Due Date. In my estimation, the primary reason Todd Phillips' latest comedy fell short of his previous effort is novelty—as much in premise as character dynamic and comedic set pieces. Given enough time, I think both films will appear similarly tired. Until then though, Due Date remains a moderately enjoyable Planes, Trains and Automobiles retread, afforded more vibrancy than it's worth due to its affable leads. Robert Downey Jr. plays the easily irritated straight man, and Zach Galifianakis plays the eccentric,...
- 2/24/2011
- by Adam Quigley
- Slash Film
A look at what's new on DVD today:
"Black Lightning" (2009)
Directed by Dmitriy Kiselev and Aleksandr Voytinskiy
Released by Universal Studios
"Wanted" director Timur Bekmambetov produced this Russian action flick about a man and his flying car, using the same effects team that worked on all of his previous films including "Night Watch." A Russian trailer is here since where we're going, we don't need to understand words.
"7th Hunt" (2010)
Directed by Jon Cohen
Released by Vanguard Cinema
A motley group of young adults are abducted and forced to fend for their survival at an abandoned military training center in the middle of nowhere in Jon Cohen's thriller.
"Alien Vs. Ninja" (2010)
Directed by Seiji Chiba
Released by Funimation
A selection of last year's New York Asian Film Festival, Seiji Chiba's crazy genre mashup may just be "the best and wittiest movie ever to air at 2am on the SyFy Channel" in the future,...
"Black Lightning" (2009)
Directed by Dmitriy Kiselev and Aleksandr Voytinskiy
Released by Universal Studios
"Wanted" director Timur Bekmambetov produced this Russian action flick about a man and his flying car, using the same effects team that worked on all of his previous films including "Night Watch." A Russian trailer is here since where we're going, we don't need to understand words.
"7th Hunt" (2010)
Directed by Jon Cohen
Released by Vanguard Cinema
A motley group of young adults are abducted and forced to fend for their survival at an abandoned military training center in the middle of nowhere in Jon Cohen's thriller.
"Alien Vs. Ninja" (2010)
Directed by Seiji Chiba
Released by Funimation
A selection of last year's New York Asian Film Festival, Seiji Chiba's crazy genre mashup may just be "the best and wittiest movie ever to air at 2am on the SyFy Channel" in the future,...
- 2/21/2011
- by Stephen Saito
- ifc.com
Do you like gangster flicks? How about French gangster movies? How about French crime films featuring their lead actor in the nude? (Put your hand down Abaius.) Well if you answered “yes!” to any of those three questions then you’re in luck. Jean-Francois Richet’s Mesrine is a two-part gangster saga (Killer Instinct and Public Enemy #1) based on the true life story of Jacques Mesrine, and it’s a brutal and beautifully shot pair of films. Vincent Cassel brings Mesrine to life with wit, cruelty, and his usual fearlessness. The films had a successful run in limited release, but don’t worry if you missed them in theaters… Mesrine: Killer Instinct hits DVD/Blu-ray on February 22nd, and we’ve got three copies on Blu/DVD to give away. How can you win? Simple… tell us in the comments section below what your favorite French film is and why. The...
- 2/21/2011
- by Rob Hunter
- FilmSchoolRejects.com
The first film in the two-part Mesrine series is getting a release on Blu-ray and we have three copies to give away. Jean-François Richet’s Mesrine: Killer Instinct stars Vincent Cassel, Cécile De France, and Gérard Depardieu.
For a chance to win one of the three Blu-rays make sure you are following The Film Stage on Facebook and/or Twitter and fill out the form below by 11:59 Pm Est on Monday, February 21st, 2011. We will select the winners at random and you will be notified by e-mail. One entry per household. No purchase necessary. Winners must live inside the U.S. Shipping to a P.O. box is not permitted. Check out more info regarding the film below, after the submission form. Good luck!
[contact-form]
Music Box Films Home Entertainment Announces
Mesrine: Killer Instinct
International Superstar Vincent Cassel Stars As Jacques Mesrine In The First Chapter Of The Acclaimed, Real-life...
For a chance to win one of the three Blu-rays make sure you are following The Film Stage on Facebook and/or Twitter and fill out the form below by 11:59 Pm Est on Monday, February 21st, 2011. We will select the winners at random and you will be notified by e-mail. One entry per household. No purchase necessary. Winners must live inside the U.S. Shipping to a P.O. box is not permitted. Check out more info regarding the film below, after the submission form. Good luck!
[contact-form]
Music Box Films Home Entertainment Announces
Mesrine: Killer Instinct
International Superstar Vincent Cassel Stars As Jacques Mesrine In The First Chapter Of The Acclaimed, Real-life...
- 2/17/2011
- by Jordan Raup
- The Film Stage
By Bryan Buss
(February 2011)
February home-video releases offer a second chance to catch indies that didn’t find an audience in theaters and long-shot awards hopefuls:
February 1
“Conviction” (20th Century Fox, R) — Hilary Swank portrays Betty Anne Waters, a woman who put herself through law school to defend her brother’s innocence in this biopic that never gained enough critical traction to help it break out of a very strong indie season last fall. While the acting was heralded (in addition to two-time Oscar winner Swank, who snagged a SAG nom for best lead actress, there’s Sam Rockwell as the imprisoned brother, Peter Gallagher and Oscar nominees Melissa Leo, Juliette Lewis and Minnie Driver offering support), the script was too conventional to raise the film beyond TV-movie level. Despite its intentions, the Tony Goldwyn-helmed drama grossed less than $7 million. (For more coverage of “Conviction,” watch our video interview...
(February 2011)
February home-video releases offer a second chance to catch indies that didn’t find an audience in theaters and long-shot awards hopefuls:
February 1
“Conviction” (20th Century Fox, R) — Hilary Swank portrays Betty Anne Waters, a woman who put herself through law school to defend her brother’s innocence in this biopic that never gained enough critical traction to help it break out of a very strong indie season last fall. While the acting was heralded (in addition to two-time Oscar winner Swank, who snagged a SAG nom for best lead actress, there’s Sam Rockwell as the imprisoned brother, Peter Gallagher and Oscar nominees Melissa Leo, Juliette Lewis and Minnie Driver offering support), the script was too conventional to raise the film beyond TV-movie level. Despite its intentions, the Tony Goldwyn-helmed drama grossed less than $7 million. (For more coverage of “Conviction,” watch our video interview...
- 2/1/2011
- by admin
- Moving Pictures Network
By Bryan Buss
(February 2011)
February home-video releases offer a second chance to catch indies that didn’t find an audience in theaters and long-shot awards hopefuls:
February 1
“Conviction” (20th Century Fox, R) — Hilary Swank portrays Betty Anne Waters, a woman who put herself through law school to defend her brother’s innocence in this biopic that never gained enough critical traction to help it break out of a very strong indie season last fall. While the acting was heralded (in addition to two-time Oscar winner Swank, who snagged a SAG nom for best lead actress, there’s Sam Rockwell as the imprisoned brother, Peter Gallagher and Oscar nominees Melissa Leo, Juliette Lewis and Minnie Driver offering support), the script was too conventional to raise the film beyond TV-movie level. Despite its intentions, the Tony Goldwyn-helmed drama grossed less than $7 million. (For more coverage of “Conviction,” watch our video interview...
(February 2011)
February home-video releases offer a second chance to catch indies that didn’t find an audience in theaters and long-shot awards hopefuls:
February 1
“Conviction” (20th Century Fox, R) — Hilary Swank portrays Betty Anne Waters, a woman who put herself through law school to defend her brother’s innocence in this biopic that never gained enough critical traction to help it break out of a very strong indie season last fall. While the acting was heralded (in addition to two-time Oscar winner Swank, who snagged a SAG nom for best lead actress, there’s Sam Rockwell as the imprisoned brother, Peter Gallagher and Oscar nominees Melissa Leo, Juliette Lewis and Minnie Driver offering support), the script was too conventional to raise the film beyond TV-movie level. Despite its intentions, the Tony Goldwyn-helmed drama grossed less than $7 million. (For more coverage of “Conviction,” watch our video interview...
- 2/1/2011
- by admin
- Moving Pictures Magazine
French actor Vincent Cassel is an unlikely sex symbol. Having made his name by playing violent, intense men, he's been cast in another dark, morally dubious film role in the new ballet thriller
At first, I didn't think I knew who Vincent Cassel was, because he has one of those faces that can look completely different in every movie he makes. That's not so unusual for a character actor, but it is for a sex symbol. In his native France he's been a leading man for many years, and if there can be a pretender to the crown last held by Gérard Depardieu then it must be Cassel – but only now, at 43, is he beginning to emerge as an international movie star.
As the son of the late French actor Jean-Pierre Cassel, a close friend of Serge Gainsbourg, Cassel grew up around the Parisian theatre scene. But his career began slowly,...
At first, I didn't think I knew who Vincent Cassel was, because he has one of those faces that can look completely different in every movie he makes. That's not so unusual for a character actor, but it is for a sex symbol. In his native France he's been a leading man for many years, and if there can be a pretender to the crown last held by Gérard Depardieu then it must be Cassel – but only now, at 43, is he beginning to emerge as an international movie star.
As the son of the late French actor Jean-Pierre Cassel, a close friend of Serge Gainsbourg, Cassel grew up around the Parisian theatre scene. But his career began slowly,...
- 1/21/2011
- by Decca Aitkenhead
- The Guardian - Film News
Vincent Cassel chats about Black Swan, Ocean's Twelve, dancing, Mesrine and a whole lot more...
Vincent Cassel is one smooth operator. Back in October, at the London Film Festival, all the journalists gathered at the roundtable interview we attended were thoroughly charmed by his suave manner and gently frank sense of humour. It's these positive qualities that resound even in Cassel's darkest, most complex roles, from the volatile Parisian street punk Vinz in La Haine, to the international criminal Jacques Mesrine.
In Black Swan, Darren Aronofsky's psycho-thriller of obsession, madness and ballet, Cassel stars as the manipulative, yet still dashing, director who pushes Natalie Portman's dancer towards perfection. With this in mind, we asked Cassel about his relationship with directors, his background in dancing and the experience of working in both French and American film industries.
Did you train as a dancer for the part?
I trained...
Vincent Cassel is one smooth operator. Back in October, at the London Film Festival, all the journalists gathered at the roundtable interview we attended were thoroughly charmed by his suave manner and gently frank sense of humour. It's these positive qualities that resound even in Cassel's darkest, most complex roles, from the volatile Parisian street punk Vinz in La Haine, to the international criminal Jacques Mesrine.
In Black Swan, Darren Aronofsky's psycho-thriller of obsession, madness and ballet, Cassel stars as the manipulative, yet still dashing, director who pushes Natalie Portman's dancer towards perfection. With this in mind, we asked Cassel about his relationship with directors, his background in dancing and the experience of working in both French and American film industries.
Did you train as a dancer for the part?
I trained...
- 1/20/2011
- Den of Geek
This week, we have a double, er, triple feature of Euro-inflected crime movies. First up is music video disciple Anton Corbijn’s The American, starring George Clooney as a reclusive, moody “craftsman” hiding out in a beautiful Italian villa following . Accompanying it is Mesrine, the four-hour, two-part thriller/bio-pic portrait of infamous French serial burglar and murderer Jacques Mesrine. Hosts Simon, Derek and Justine were so fazed by the latter that the result must be one of the most scattered reviews in Sound on Sight history, though you might at least leave it with a working definition of the term “Lewis.”
listen now
Download the show in a new window
Playlist:
The Soundcarriers – There Only Once
Yo La Tengo – Periodically Triple or Double
Dosh – Airlift
Listen on I-Tunes RSS feeds Twitter Facebook...
listen now
Download the show in a new window
Playlist:
The Soundcarriers – There Only Once
Yo La Tengo – Periodically Triple or Double
Dosh – Airlift
Listen on I-Tunes RSS feeds Twitter Facebook...
- 12/26/2010
- by Ricky
- SoundOnSight
Biopics tend to focus on the subject’s high and low points with little time for the real lives in between. It’s a problem of running time as films are compelled to force their stories into a two hour window, but two filmmakers in the past couple of years have foregone that route with their own biographical films running well beyond that artificial 120 minute limit. Both films feature criminals as their subject, and both come from French directors. Jean-Francois Richet’s 2008 film, Mesrine, is a two part, four hour look at notorious French gangster, Jacques Mesrine, and stars Vincent Cassel in the title role. Never one to shy away from a challenge, director Olivier Assayas released his own biopic this year. Carlos is a three part, five hour plus epic about the world’s most infamous terrorist. And yes, star Edgar Ramirez’ testosterone-fueled Carlos makes Bruce Willis’ turn in The Jackal look like a that of...
- 11/15/2010
- by Rob Hunter
- FilmSchoolRejects.com
Coming this week to Theatre N, Wilmington's independent art house, experience are the following films and events: October 20 11/4/08 A user-generated feature documentary featuring footage shot all over the world on the day Barack Obama was elected president. There will be a Q & A following the screening with questions submitted via Twitter. October 22-24 Mesrine: Killer Instinct and Mesrine: Public Enemy No. 1 is a series about Jacques Mesrine, a loyal son and soldier who is living with his parents after the Algerian war. He is seduced by the glamour and easy money of Paris in...
- 10/18/2010
- by Bernardo Villela, Wilmington Movie Examiner
- Examiner Movies Channel
Trying to encapsulate someone's life story into the timespan of 120 minutes or less is unlikely to do that person's life justice, which is why it's surprising how often Hollywood biopics try while filmmakers like Steven Soderbergh and Jean-François Richet took the approach with their respective films about Che Guevara and Jacques Mesrine to break their stories into two separate movies. Like those movies, Olivier Assayas' Carlos is by no means a conventional biopic, but it's the French director's most ambitious work, following the exploits of the terrorist born Ilich Ramirez Sánchez, but better known as Carlos the Jackal, portrayed by Venezuelan actor Édgar Ramírez in the performance of his career. Over the course of three chapters, each at least 100 minutes long, Assayas's...
- 10/11/2010
- Comingsoon.net
Filed under: Reviews, New Releases, Cinematical
With all due respect to director Jean-Francois Richet, 'Mesrine' is one movie and probably a whole hour longer than it needs to be. Split into two two-plus hour installments, 'Killer Instinct' and 'Public Enemy #1,' there doesn't seem to be a detail about French criminal Jacques Mesrine's life that isn't explored in considerable detail, and yet by the end of the latter, not only have we gotten the point, we no longer have much interest in watching this sociopath destroy not only his own life but that of the people who (temporarily, at least) surround him.
A crime saga that probably would have been better-suited to a television miniseries than two generally effective but overstuffed feature-length movies, 'Mesrine' is a fascinating true-life story that suffers only from trying too hard to be completely true to life.
Continue Reading...
With all due respect to director Jean-Francois Richet, 'Mesrine' is one movie and probably a whole hour longer than it needs to be. Split into two two-plus hour installments, 'Killer Instinct' and 'Public Enemy #1,' there doesn't seem to be a detail about French criminal Jacques Mesrine's life that isn't explored in considerable detail, and yet by the end of the latter, not only have we gotten the point, we no longer have much interest in watching this sociopath destroy not only his own life but that of the people who (temporarily, at least) surround him.
A crime saga that probably would have been better-suited to a television miniseries than two generally effective but overstuffed feature-length movies, 'Mesrine' is a fascinating true-life story that suffers only from trying too hard to be completely true to life.
Continue Reading...
- 10/3/2010
- by Todd Gilchrist
- Moviefone
Filed under: Reviews, New Releases, Cinematical
With all due respect to director Jean-Francois Richet, 'Mesrine' is one movie and probably a whole hour longer than it needs to be. Split into two two-plus hour installments, 'Killer Instinct' and 'Public Enemy #1,' there doesn't seem to be a detail about French criminal Jacques Mesrine's life that isn't explored in considerable detail, and yet by the end of the latter, not only have we gotten the point, we no longer have much interest in watching this sociopath destroy not only his own life but that of the people who (temporarily, at least) surround him.
A crime saga that probably would have been better-suited to a television miniseries than two generally effective but overstuffed feature-length movies, 'Mesrine' is a fascinating true-life story that suffers only from trying too hard to be completely true to life.
Continue Reading...
With all due respect to director Jean-Francois Richet, 'Mesrine' is one movie and probably a whole hour longer than it needs to be. Split into two two-plus hour installments, 'Killer Instinct' and 'Public Enemy #1,' there doesn't seem to be a detail about French criminal Jacques Mesrine's life that isn't explored in considerable detail, and yet by the end of the latter, not only have we gotten the point, we no longer have much interest in watching this sociopath destroy not only his own life but that of the people who (temporarily, at least) surround him.
A crime saga that probably would have been better-suited to a television miniseries than two generally effective but overstuffed feature-length movies, 'Mesrine' is a fascinating true-life story that suffers only from trying too hard to be completely true to life.
Continue Reading...
- 10/3/2010
- by Todd Gilchrist
- Cinematical
Following in the footsteps of the two-part Vincent Cassel biopic of notorious French gangster Jacques Mesrine another iconic criminal, Carlos the Jackal, has been given the big screen treatment and Empire have exclusively revealed the UK quad.
Carlos stars Edgar Ramirez in the title role (he appeared in both Che: Part One and The Bourne Ultimatum) and the film makes its UK debut at the London Film Festival, having been edited down to a three hour movie (it begun life as a five and a half hours TV mini-series).
Personally, I prefer this fantastic 70’s inspired poster for the film, which was used for festival promotions.
Carlos is on limited release in the UK from October 22.
Carlos stars Edgar Ramirez in the title role (he appeared in both Che: Part One and The Bourne Ultimatum) and the film makes its UK debut at the London Film Festival, having been edited down to a three hour movie (it begun life as a five and a half hours TV mini-series).
Personally, I prefer this fantastic 70’s inspired poster for the film, which was used for festival promotions.
Carlos is on limited release in the UK from October 22.
- 9/27/2010
- by Adam Lowes
- HeyUGuys.co.uk
Jacques Mesrine was a real-life violent thug with a penchant for publicity and drama and it’s surprising that only now, more than 30 years after his death, they’ve gotten around to making a film about his life. Mesrine: Killer Instinct is a wildly entertaining, if somewhat episodic and scattershot biopic of the famed gangster (Vincent Cassel in an epic, Cesar Award-winning performance), known in his day as the French John Dillinger. Director Jean-Francois Richet barrels breathlessly through 20 years of daring heists, flying bullets, mob violence, love affairs, and jail breaks throughout the 1960s and 1970s and the action clocks in at just under four hours. Actually it’s two movies that open today at the Tivoli in St. Louis; Mesrine: Killer Instinct was made in 2007 and its sequel Mesrine: Public Enemy #1 a year later. European audiences had to wait between films but I would think seeing these back-to-back makes a much more satisfying experience,...
- 9/24/2010
- by Tom Stockman
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
French actor Vincent Cassel comes to the 2010 Toronto International Film Festival (Tiff) with two films to promote. In the French drama “Our Day Will Come,” directed by up-and-comer Romain Gravas, Cassel plays a school guidance counselor who mentors a teenage boy (Olivier Barthelemy) ridiculed for being a redhead. “Black Swan,” from director Darren Aronofsky, pushes the 43-year-old Frenchman into the festival spotlight. Cassel stars as the artistic director of a major New York ballet company who gives the shy but determined Nina (Natalie Portman) the chance of a lifetime by casting her as the lead in a production of “Swan Lake.” Behind both these films lies the most important work of Cassel’s career, director Jean-Francois Richet’s two-film drama “Mesrine: Killer Instinct” and “Mesrine: Public Enemy 1” based on the real-life criminal Jacques Mesrine, currently playing in U.S. art cinemas.
- 9/21/2010
- Upcoming-Movies.com
Previously, Raffi posted his review of Mesrine: Killer Instinct, the first of a two-part film series. This weekend I saw both films with plans to review the latter, but having seen both, it’s difficult to discuss them as two separate entities.
While the first film is a fast-paced gangster flick in the vein of Goodfellas, the latter is a wandering exploration of the criminal’s downfall. Basically, in classic screenplay structure – the first film ends at the plot’s midpoint. The result is that the films feel hatcheted in two with a roughly hewn book-ending device that ultimately dulls the tension of the second film’s climax.
Having said that, Mesrine is a deeply compelling look into the mind of a criminal genius that follows the notorious Jacques Mesrine from debonair gangster to deluded revolutionary.
Mesrine was a controversial figure to the people of France. As the marketing boasts:...
While the first film is a fast-paced gangster flick in the vein of Goodfellas, the latter is a wandering exploration of the criminal’s downfall. Basically, in classic screenplay structure – the first film ends at the plot’s midpoint. The result is that the films feel hatcheted in two with a roughly hewn book-ending device that ultimately dulls the tension of the second film’s climax.
Having said that, Mesrine is a deeply compelling look into the mind of a criminal genius that follows the notorious Jacques Mesrine from debonair gangster to deluded revolutionary.
Mesrine was a controversial figure to the people of France. As the marketing boasts:...
- 9/20/2010
- by Kristy Puchko
- The Film Stage
Reviews for independent films are often posted during the week they are released in NYC and La. By the time the movies arrive in the mid- and small-markets, the notices are forgotten. This weekly feature will feature previously published blurbs from indie flicks playing in Portland, Oregon (mid-market) and Portland, Maine (small-market), representing what's also likely playing in similar cities, so that indie fans in smaller markets know what's worth visiting.
* represents Pajiba recommended indie films
Now Playing in Portland, Oregon
*The Tillman Story: In the era of 24-hour news and pundit privateering, The Tillman Story offers up a wonderful yanking of the curtain to expose the machinery behind the spin. The U.S. government and the U.S. military sought to use the corpse of Pat Tillman as a soapbox to tout honor and sacrifice, figuring that the family would stand meekly by, dabbing eyes with tissues and waving tiny American flags.
* represents Pajiba recommended indie films
Now Playing in Portland, Oregon
*The Tillman Story: In the era of 24-hour news and pundit privateering, The Tillman Story offers up a wonderful yanking of the curtain to expose the machinery behind the spin. The U.S. government and the U.S. military sought to use the corpse of Pat Tillman as a soapbox to tout honor and sacrifice, figuring that the family would stand meekly by, dabbing eyes with tissues and waving tiny American flags.
- 9/11/2010
- by Dustin Rowles
I typically have problems with epically episodic films. I also really hate when films begin with the end of the story...in this case November 2, 1979 in the Porte de Clignancourt neighborhood of Paris. A burly, middle-aged man wearing an obvious wig and beard gets into a gold BMW with his redheaded girlfriend and her dog. As they approach the expressway, a blue truck pulls in front of them. The canvas tail-gate lifts, revealing four men holding rifles. They open fire. Fifty-two shots in total, 14 of which hit the man in the wig...killing Jacques Mesrine (Vincent Cassel).
- 9/10/2010
- by Don Simpson
- SmellsLikeScreenSpirit
The second half of the French gangster series drags a bit at the end but is fun, macho stuff nonetheless. .Mesrine: Public Enemy No. 1. is the second of a two part series about the iconic career criminal Jacques Mesrine, the .John Dillinger. of French criminals. Dillinger was a depression-era criminal who captured the hearts of many Americans with his imaginative and daring prison escapes and his occasional .Robin Hood. bravado of redistributing wealth. The wealth redistribution was a hit because most Americans blamed the overfed bankers for causing the recession and for many American workers losing their homes and being thrown into poverty. Not much different from today, actually. Mesrine was as good as or better than...
- 9/10/2010
- by Ron Wilkinson
- Monsters and Critics
A macho good time. The rebel without a cause finds out that wartime training with guns has its advantages. .Mesrine: Killer Instinct. is the first of a two part series about the iconic career criminal Jacques Mesrine, the .John Dillinger. of French criminals. Dillinger was a depression-era criminal who captured the hearts of many Americans with his imaginative and daring prison escapes and his occasional .Robin Hood. bravado of redistributing wealth. The wealth redistribution was a hit because most Americans blamed the overfed bankers for causing the recession and for many American workers losing their homes and being thrown into poverty. Not much different from today, actually. Michael Mann's and Johnny Depp.s film .Public Enemies. (2009) is an...
- 9/10/2010
- by Ron Wilkinson
- Monsters and Critics
The second half of Jean-Francois Richet's four-hour telling of the exploits of Jacques Mesrine, Public Enemy No. 1, is a much more solid film, if less enjoyable. (Part I reviewed here.) While it's got all the same foibles, faults, and frenetic fun of the first film, it's a much more focused effort, considering it's pretty much a controlled slide into death. It opens following the death of Mesrine, and then shows us how this smiling maniac came crashing to his doom.
Mesrine, as told to a reporter he hijacks for an exclusive, never planned to live long. He knew he was fated to die in a hail of bullets. We know this as film watchers too, because that's how all criminals die, and Mesrine comes off as the amalgamation of all criminals. Again, we get some French luminaries shining in brief moments in the film, although the roles are slightly prolonged.
Mesrine, as told to a reporter he hijacks for an exclusive, never planned to live long. He knew he was fated to die in a hail of bullets. We know this as film watchers too, because that's how all criminals die, and Mesrine comes off as the amalgamation of all criminals. Again, we get some French luminaries shining in brief moments in the film, although the roles are slightly prolonged.
- 9/9/2010
- by Brian Prisco
If Jacques Mesrine didn't really exist, some screenwriter would have invented him. Like Tom Hardy's Bronson, Mesrine was a charming bastard, a stylish fiend, a bank robber with a silver tongue and a psychotic disposition. Mesrine spent most of the 1960s and 1970s bounding from bank heist to prison cell and breaking back out again all over France. Like a Capone or Dillinger, he became a notorious folk legend -- the honest bandit. But what's perhaps most interesting is that while he sat in prison, Mesrine became disgusted with the blasphemous coverage in the papers, so he published his own account of his exploits: murders, mayhem, and making of the love. Which is primarily where director Jean-Francois Richet and screenwriter Abdel Raouf Dafri take their story from. Plenty of movies have been made about Mesrine, but this one is adapted directly from the man himself. Which means you have...
- 9/8/2010
- by Dustin Rowles
In the masterful conclusion to his two-part biopic of notorious 1970s French gangster Jacques Mesrine, Jean-François Richet again begins at the end. It’s no spoiler to reveal that Mesrine infamously died in a rain of police gunfire in the center of Paris, and Richet starts the part one, “Mesrine: Killer Instinct,” with this incident and part two, “Mesrine: Public Enemy #1,” with its aftermath. Our anticipation of the outcome of an otherwise episodically structured story, coupled with an atmospheric score by Marco Beltrami and Marcus Trumpp — who use sad string music as the unceremonious end approaches — creates a sense of intrigue throughout.
Gone are the split screens that characterized part one. Instead, Mesrine (Vincent Cassel, still alluring even with the 45-pound pot belly he gained for the role), now confident in the path he’s chosen though fully aware of his likely fate, fills the frame. His exploits have grown more audacious.
Gone are the split screens that characterized part one. Instead, Mesrine (Vincent Cassel, still alluring even with the 45-pound pot belly he gained for the role), now confident in the path he’s chosen though fully aware of his likely fate, fills the frame. His exploits have grown more audacious.
- 9/5/2010
- Moving Pictures Magazine
Mesrine: Public Enemy No. 1 picks up not where its predecessor (Mesrine: Killer Instinct, which opened last week) left off, but rather where that film's first scene left off: with the imminent demise of its title subject. In the opening scene we return to the Paris intersection where Jacques Mesrine (Vincent Cassel) was murdered in his car, and find the press feeding unchecked on his perforated corpse. It's a mirroring that doesn't bode well for those hoping that director Jean-François Richet might make the second half of his saga from scratch.
- 9/3/2010
- Movieline
Sep 03, 2010
In an early scene in Mesrine: Public Enemy #1, the title character is robbing a bank when he sees another bank across the street and decides to try and take that one down in the same robbery. Jacques Mesrine (Vincent Cassel) was not a man who often planned his criminal acts as much as acted as something like a stream-of-consciousness madman. It's not long after that that he's pulling a gun in a courtroom and taking a judge hostage. Jacques Mesrine was not like you and me. But was there enough to him to ...Read more at MovieRetriever.com...
In an early scene in Mesrine: Public Enemy #1, the title character is robbing a bank when he sees another bank across the street and decides to try and take that one down in the same robbery. Jacques Mesrine (Vincent Cassel) was not a man who often planned his criminal acts as much as acted as something like a stream-of-consciousness madman. It's not long after that that he's pulling a gun in a courtroom and taking a judge hostage. Jacques Mesrine was not like you and me. But was there enough to him to ...Read more at MovieRetriever.com...
- 9/3/2010
- CinemaNerdz
Rating: 3.5/5.0
Chicago – When we last left Jacques Mesrine in “Mesrine: Killer Instinct,” he was robbing banks, killing cops, and escaping from jail. In “Mesrine: Public Enemy #1,” Jacques Mesrine robs banks, kills cops, and escapes from jail. The second half of the “Mesrine” saga contains most of the same strengths and flaws as its predecessor and one has to wonder if the two films couldn’t have been merged into a stronger and more accomplished single project.
While I would never suggest merging and truncating the “Kill Bill” films or the “Lord of the Rings” trilogy, there’s enough repetitive detail in the “Mesrine” films that I truly believe there’s a stronger version that runs about three hours as opposed to the over-four that these two films run combined. Vincent Cassel still simply rocks in the title role and his work alone makes it worth a trip to the arthouse...
Chicago – When we last left Jacques Mesrine in “Mesrine: Killer Instinct,” he was robbing banks, killing cops, and escaping from jail. In “Mesrine: Public Enemy #1,” Jacques Mesrine robs banks, kills cops, and escapes from jail. The second half of the “Mesrine” saga contains most of the same strengths and flaws as its predecessor and one has to wonder if the two films couldn’t have been merged into a stronger and more accomplished single project.
While I would never suggest merging and truncating the “Kill Bill” films or the “Lord of the Rings” trilogy, there’s enough repetitive detail in the “Mesrine” films that I truly believe there’s a stronger version that runs about three hours as opposed to the over-four that these two films run combined. Vincent Cassel still simply rocks in the title role and his work alone makes it worth a trip to the arthouse...
- 9/3/2010
- by adam@hollywoodchicago.com (Adam Fendelman)
- HollywoodChicago.com
Mesrine: Killer Instinct began by showing how police gunned down French criminal/celebrity Jacques Mesrine in his car in 1979; it then jumped back in time to show how his life of crime began. Mesrine: Public Enemy No. 1, the second half of Jean-François Richet’s biopic, begins where Killer Instinct’s opening left off, as police tout their accomplishment to the press and a crowd of onlookers, and a circus-like atmosphere surrounds Mesrine’s bloodied corpse. It’s a grim scene that recalls post-lynching celebrations in the American South, but it also gives Public Enemy an edge that ...
- 9/2/2010
- avclub.com
Jean-François Richet’s Mesrine: Killer Instinct opened strong on 28 screens this past weekend, which is a good sign for Mesrine: Public Enemy #1 (part 2, which opens September 3). The films, both hits in France, have been waiting for a release since their 2008 Toronto premieres; now they and their riveting star Vincent Cassel (in his César winning performance as French gangster Jacques Mesrine) are able to impress a wider audience. Check out the exclusive clip below from Mesrine: Public Enemy #1 and our interview with Cassel here, in which he talks about his upcoming films; Darren Aronofsky's Black Swan and David Cronenberg's Dangerous Method:...
- 8/31/2010
- Thompson on Hollywood
As if there needed to be physical proof that he's one of France's most versatile actors today, Vincent Cassel (La Haine, Irreversible, Eastern Promises) won a César for playing the titular role in director—and fellow César winner—Jean-François Richet's two-part underworld epic Mesrine:
Mesrine: Killer Instinct charts the outlaw odyssey of Jacques Mesrine (Vincent Cassel), the legendary French gangster of the '60s and '70s who came to be known as French Public Enemy No. 1 and The Man of a Thousand Faces. Infamous for his bravado and outrageously daring prison escapes, Mesrine carried out numerous robberies, kidnappings and murders in a criminal career that spanned continents until he was shot dead in 1979 by France's notorious anti-gang unit. Thirty years after his death, his infamy lives on.
Mesrine was helped along the way by beautiful and equally reckless Jeanne Schneider (Cécile de France), a Bonnie to match his Clyde.
Mesrine: Killer Instinct charts the outlaw odyssey of Jacques Mesrine (Vincent Cassel), the legendary French gangster of the '60s and '70s who came to be known as French Public Enemy No. 1 and The Man of a Thousand Faces. Infamous for his bravado and outrageously daring prison escapes, Mesrine carried out numerous robberies, kidnappings and murders in a criminal career that spanned continents until he was shot dead in 1979 by France's notorious anti-gang unit. Thirty years after his death, his infamy lives on.
Mesrine was helped along the way by beautiful and equally reckless Jeanne Schneider (Cécile de France), a Bonnie to match his Clyde.
- 8/31/2010
- GreenCine Daily
While "The Last Exorcism" and "Takers" battled it out for the final weekend crown of Hollywood's summer, Jean-François Richet's "Mesrine: Killer Instinct" was easily the top specialty debut, at least among those reporting estimates to Rentrak earlier today. "Mesrine: Killer Instinct" - which premiered nearly two years at the 2008 Toronto International Film Festival - is director Jean-François Richet's chronicle of French gangster Jacques Mesrine. Music Box Films released the movie ...
- 8/29/2010
- Indiewire
Vincent Cassel is proving to be one of this generations most talented and prolific actors. Better known perhaps as the villain in Ocean’s 12, Cassel has been making movies for nearly two decades and has starred in some of the very best contemporary films to come out of his home country of France, where he is considered a certified rock star. With Mesrine: Killer Instinct, Cassel delivers the performance of a lifetime in a sprawling biopic crime drama about notorious French criminal Jacques Mesrine better known as Public Enemy No 1.
Helmed by Jean-Francois Richet, who directed the loose remake of John Carpenters‘ Assault on Precinct 13, Killer Instinct is part one of two feature films that capture the bizarre odyssey of crimes committed by Mesrine with style, substance and subtlety. After a stark and disturbing opening set against the Algerian war, a young soldier by the name of Jacques Mesrine...
Helmed by Jean-Francois Richet, who directed the loose remake of John Carpenters‘ Assault on Precinct 13, Killer Instinct is part one of two feature films that capture the bizarre odyssey of crimes committed by Mesrine with style, substance and subtlety. After a stark and disturbing opening set against the Algerian war, a young soldier by the name of Jacques Mesrine...
- 8/27/2010
- by Raffi Asdourian
- The Film Stage
Chicago – The film around its riveting central performance may be a little more flawed than the entire project’s international reputation would have you believe but Vincent Cassel alone makes a trip to “Mesrine: Killer Instinct” worth the time and emotional effort. Be warned that this is not a crime epic for the faint of heart and those who have difficulty with an anti-hero protagonist may be turned off but those attuned to this kind of storytelling will find a lot to like here.
Rating: 3.5/5.0
Directed by Jean-Francois Richet from a script that he co-wrote with Abdel Raouf Dafri, “Mesrine: Killer Instinct” is the first half of a pair of crime epics that have been incredibly successful over the last several years in France and other European countries. (The second half if “Mesrine: Public Enemey #1” which we will cover in this space next week.) The films episodically tell the life...
Rating: 3.5/5.0
Directed by Jean-Francois Richet from a script that he co-wrote with Abdel Raouf Dafri, “Mesrine: Killer Instinct” is the first half of a pair of crime epics that have been incredibly successful over the last several years in France and other European countries. (The second half if “Mesrine: Public Enemey #1” which we will cover in this space next week.) The films episodically tell the life...
- 8/27/2010
- by adam@hollywoodchicago.com (Adam Fendelman)
- HollywoodChicago.com
Don't hate Vincent Cassel for having it all: If it wasn't enough that he's one of the biggest matinee idols in France, he's also married to Monica Bellucci. It's fitting then, that someone of his stature would play a criminal like Jacques Mesrine in the new filmic diptych Mesrine: Killer Instinct and Mesrine: Public Enemy No. 1 -- though the murderous Mesrine did a lot of bad things in 1970s France, he somehow became one of the country's most popular celebrities.
The charming and candid Cassel sat down with Movieline this month to discuss his interpretation of Mesrine, his own love of celebrity, and the pair of English-language films he has on the way: Darren Aronofsky's Black Swan, and David Cronenberg's A Dangerous Method.
The charming and candid Cassel sat down with Movieline this month to discuss his interpretation of Mesrine, his own love of celebrity, and the pair of English-language films he has on the way: Darren Aronofsky's Black Swan, and David Cronenberg's A Dangerous Method.
- 8/26/2010
- Movieline
Luridly handsome and resolutely unsympathetic, as played by Vincent Cassel, the title character in the gangster's greatest hits compilation Mesrine: Killer Instinct is a thug's thug. It would seem he was so in life as well: A notorious criminal in his native France, Jacques Mesrine died with his leather jacket on (as seen in an ambush depicted in the movie's opening scene) after a life of unrepentantly violent, sometimes brashly vigilantic misdeeds.
- 8/25/2010
- Movieline
“Nobody kills me until I say so!” – Jacques Mesrine
It’s been a long wait for those who follow world cinema, but finally the French crime epic, Mesrine: Killer Instinct has found a general release in the UK. The film that’s been respectfully tagged “The French Scarface” was released two years ago in France and enjoyed a very successful run on DVD in the UK at the beginning of this year.
Highly rated by critics from around the world, winning 6 prestigious awards and containing a cast of everyone who’s anyone in French cinema it’s a shock that so many English filmgoers haven’t even heard of it. Lets hope its general release will change that. To celebrate we have two great clips from the film just for your enjoyment:
The early career (1959-’70) of outlaw Jacques Mesrine (Cassel), covering his military service in Algeria, apprenticeship with a...
It’s been a long wait for those who follow world cinema, but finally the French crime epic, Mesrine: Killer Instinct has found a general release in the UK. The film that’s been respectfully tagged “The French Scarface” was released two years ago in France and enjoyed a very successful run on DVD in the UK at the beginning of this year.
Highly rated by critics from around the world, winning 6 prestigious awards and containing a cast of everyone who’s anyone in French cinema it’s a shock that so many English filmgoers haven’t even heard of it. Lets hope its general release will change that. To celebrate we have two great clips from the film just for your enjoyment:
The early career (1959-’70) of outlaw Jacques Mesrine (Cassel), covering his military service in Algeria, apprenticeship with a...
- 8/25/2010
- by Michael Brooks
- FilmShaft.com
Mention The Godfather or Scarface or Goodfellas -- it doesn't matter which American gangster epic you reference, chances are Jean-Francois Richet's pair of Mesrine films stack up pretty well as an example of gutsy, energetic and thoughtful filmmaking. The two films are Mesrine: Killer Instinct and Mesrine: Public Enemy #1, which won a variety of awards in France when they were released there. The matched set opens in limited release on consecutive weeks in New York - Killer Instinct on Friday (8/27/10), Public Enemy #1 on Sept. 3. Movies don't come with much more vitality, excitement and suspense than the Mesrine films. Starring the hulkingly suave Vincent Cassel as late French gangster Jacques Mesrine (who was killed by police in 1979, after 20-plus years of robbing banks), the "Mesrine" films are a fiercely elegant blend of thriller and character study, built...
- 8/25/2010
- by Marshall Fine
- Huffington Post
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