This is a grim, stylish, riveting look at the world of one despicable, middle-aged Parisian gangster and the changing of the repugnant guard around him.
Claude Corti (Philippe Caiubère) is an organized crime boss who keeps his patch firmly under his thumb. He keeps his redeeming qualities well-hidden, his brutality on clear display. During one rant at his fartcatchers, this chest-thumping alpha male tells them why he's the only real man of the bunch: "Because I never let myself get fucked."
Think of him as the French Tony Montana. :)
The son he never had is Franck (Benoit Magimel), an independent contract killer.
Corti's emerging rivals are the "cousins," two North Africans.
If you're a seasoned crime-movie watcher, you should be able to see where the plot is going.
Director Frederic Schoendoerffer, who helped produce and write the film, creates a neon noir world of strip club decadence for his characters and a tense, unrelenting atmosphere that never lets you forget violence of the most disturbing type could well be around the next corner.*
* A warning for the squeamish: There is a graphic scene of torture in this film. I have a reasonably high tolerance for extreme films, and I was squirming. A few people walked out. There are also some graphic sexual scenes that include elements of violence.
Schoendoerffer has two other films under his belt as director: Agents secrets (2004) and Scenes des crimes (2000), the latter for which he received a Cesar nomination.
I haven't seen his earlier work, but based on this film, I must say Schoendoerffer knows how to stage a gunfight. The drug deal gone bad involving the cousins is one of the better bits of cinematic bang-bang I've seen in years.
However, violence isn't inherently interesting. My take on Smokin' Aces was that it was remarkable how so much shooting and killing could result in such a boring movie. Schoendoerffer shows he knows how to capture the poetry of violence without over-relying on it on a cinematic device (like cilantro, a little violence can go a long ways).
As a result, Truands might be a brutal, amoral film (Schoendoerffer doesn't present this world as good or bad, just that it is), but it's certainly not dull.
It's also quite stunning to look at. Frequent Schoendoerffer collaborator Jean-Pierre Sauvaire gets the cinematography credit, and he deserves kudos for a beautifully-shot film.
Give the cast credit for having the cool factor going and hitting mostly authentic notes with their characters.
My major complaints would be some minor plot holes and the misogynistic tone. Women in this movie are literally disposable.
However, the test of a film character isn't whether he or she is likable or admirable, it's whether they are memorable. Similarly, the test of a movie is whether it gets under one's skin, whether scenes explode on the insides of one's eyelids hours, days, months or even years after seeing the film.
It's been about 3½ hours since I left the theatre, and I'm still buzzing, so by that standard, both the characters and overall film measure up as worth seeing.
If Goodfellas is a 10 as a crime drama (and it is), then I'd rate this one about a 7.5. Lovers of intense crime films should check it out, given the flaws I've noted.
Of course, it goes without saying that if you don't want to see an extremely violent, misogynistic film, stay away. Similarly, if you want a film to make a larger point about the human condition, I don't think Schoendoerffer really had that objective in mind.
You can find trailers at this Twitch page.
This May 20 Variety article talks about the revival of French gangster films, which mentions Truands in passing. An excerpt:
With so many gangster projects in the pipeline, some critics in France have expressed concern that the new generation of screen mobsters may have none of the codes of honor, however warped, that gave them a certain nobility in the cinematic past.
Recent efforts, such as the hyper-violent "Crime Insiders" seem to point to a more amoral universe.
In terms of screen violence "there is always some sort of escalation," says (Gaumont director general Franck) Chorot. "This reflects the reality of French society. There was a code of honor with the old Corsican gangsters. But it all became more violent in the '80s and '90s. It's the whole of society that changed."
The article credits the 2004 film 36 Quai des Orfevres with launching the revival. I've seen it on DVD, and it's a terrific movie -- and much more mainstream than Truands.
It also mentions some forthcoming French crime film projects: Second Breath (Le Deuxieme souffle), a remake of a 1996 French classic; and Public Enemy No. 1 and Death Instinct, two about legendary French criminal Jacques Mesrine.
The latter two will star Vincent Cassel, which gives me a chance to pimp Sheitan yet again! :) Speaking of memorable characters, you will not soon forget Cassel's Joseph in that film! :)