Synopsis
Inspired by the 2005 riots in Paris, Stéphane, a recent transplant to the impoverished suburb of Montfermeil, joins the local anti-crime squad. Working alongside his unscrupulous colleagues Chris and Gwada, Stéphane struggles to maintain order amidst the mounting tensions between local gangs. When an arrest turns unexpectedly violent, the three officers must reckon with the aftermath and keep the neighborhood from spiraling out of control.
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Cast
- Damien BonnardBrigadier Stéphane Ruiz, aka Pento
- Alexis ManentiChris
- Djebril ZongaGwada
- Steve TientcheuThe Mayor
- Jeanne BalibarThe Comissioner
- Issa PericaIssa
- Al-Hassan LyBuzz
- Almamy KanouteSalah
- Nizar Ben Fatma'La Pince'
- Raymond LopezZorro
Recommendations
- 88
TheWrap
Ly rather cleverly inoculates his film to charges of repetition by outright owning them. Of course, you’ve seen stories like before. The film freely admits, these exact same stories, these preventable tragedies and pointless injustices have been manifesting themselves for hundreds of years. - 83
The Film Stage
Ly makes a concerted effort to go beneath the topsoil of conventional Parisian crime films. Indeed, his script takes the time to show seemingly inconsequential things that go on behind the suburb’s closed doors, moments of rich contextual value if not obvious narrative importance. - 83
The Playlist
Ly makes it hard to paint these characters in broad strokes, no matter how we might try. - 80
CineVue
Although the handling of certain plot dynamics on occasion isn’t as strong as its potent aesthetic finesse, Ly mounts a thriller operating as a savage indictment of social policies and underhand police tactics and ass-covering corruption. - 80
Screen Daily
For all its familiarity, Ly’s film is executed with enormous confidence and energy, building up to an apocalyptic ending that delivers on a gradual build-up of nervous tension. - 75
IndieWire
The scalding final sequence of Ly’s film is powerful enough to obliterate the occasionally clumsy path by which it gets there. - 70
The Hollywood Reporter
Heavy-handed and predictable in spots, yet engrossing and provocative in others, it’s an impressive if somewhat unruly debut - 70
Los Angeles Times
Ly surveys all his characters without judgment, but a longer, richer version of this movie might have distributed its sympathies to even more powerful effect.
