“CRIMEÂ WHILE DOING TIME”
Starring: Tahar Rahim, Niels Arestrup and Hichem Yacoubi
Directed by: Jacques Audiard
MPAA Rating: R for strong violence, sexual content, nudity, language and drug material.
Genre: Foreign, drama art/Foreign, Drama and Crime/Gangster, In French with English subtitles
Release date: April 2, 2010
By John Delia
The mesmerizing crime film A Prophet gets rolling quickly and then settles in to some interesting character development and storytelling to it’s twisted ending. The acting, directing, cinematography are superb making it a must see for film buffs, prison drama lovers and filmmaking students. A Prophet was nominated for an Oscar for Best Foreign Film for 2009.
The film centers on Malik (Rahim) a streetwise 19-year-old who gets sentenced to prison for six years. The illiterate lost soul is totally out of his element and it’s obvious to his prison mates. Ruling the prison is the Corsican gang who lay prey to Malik and forces him to carry out a murder with the promise of protection. But Malik is a fast learner and he gets close to the leader Cesar (Niels Arestrup) who takes him on as an assistant. Soon he rises in the prison ranks and sets a plan that will either get him riches or a road to hell.
The characters depicted in the film are very scary, cunning and sadistic adding to the suspense and irony within the story. While Malik portrays a meek young man who is easily swayed his ability to adapt shows in reality his shrewdness. When he brings what he has learned back to the streets we see another personality develop.
Director Audiard controls his characters in the dank surroundings making the film so sinister I was able to feel the hatred, depression and brutality come
off the screen. He guides the camerawork and lighting enabling the viewer to get the feeling of being locked up with the inmates of his scary penitentiary. The tight shots in the small cells are brilliantly filmed giving me a claustrophobic sensation.
A Prophet is rated R for strong violence, sexual content, nudity, language and drug material. There are some very graphic scenes in the showers that may be unsettling.
FINAL ANALYSIS: A strong prison drama that is deserving of its Oscar Nomination. (4.5 of 5 Palm Trees)