De l'amour

Great movie about four youngs living in the suburbs. This is not an apology of rabbles like a few movies based on the same subject are. The four main actors are very good, even Stomy Bugsy, whose acting is not his primary job. We also see Jean François Stevenin playing a bastard, very good. The film is not too miserable, and reveals a kind of life in the french suburbs.

In "De L'Amour" (the title is borrowed from a book by Stendahl),Richet meant to denounce racism in the police .It was commendable,provided you do not think racism exists only among the cops.

So it may have been,but if so it signally fails in its purpose.Not only the movie is rather flat ,but it is also as if the director (as an user has already pointed out),towards the end of the effort,suddenly appreciated how listless it was and desperately attempted to enliven things by last-minute devices such as the very violent scenes in the woods.

Two different guys "represent" the Police:

The lieutenant(Bruno Putzulu,De la Comédie Française) is good-looking,nice,human .He has a prepossessing wife and kids (we can hear them) and he opens his door to every Tom,Dick and Harry all day and night.

In direct contrast with this,we have the cop in uniform(Jean -François Stevenin,one of Truffaut's favorite actors):he is mean,vicious,racist,sinister-looking.We do not know whether he has a family life. He hints at frequent suicide among the Police,which is true .

Virginie Le Doyen is his victim .He can't forgive her for sleeping with an Arab.

The setting is modern day urban France. Maria, her boyfriend Karim, her best friend Linda and Karim's best friend, Manu, are the main characters in this at times powerful and intriguing yet ultimately empty film.

The first 20 minutes or so are very dull, especially the scenes between Karim and Manu. But Linda has charm and is a nice character, and whilst Maria isn't the most likeable character to ever appear in a film, she does have a certain quality that engages the audience, say, an X-factor.

Once the film gets going it's mostly a good to average experience. One of the film's main strengths is its portrayal of the ethnic melting pot that is modern day France. Racism is a subject running through the film, from inter-racial relationships to police brutality and ignorance, which is the other main aspect of the film. After she is caught shoplifting, Maria is taken to a police station. And what unfolds will become one of her worst nights ever.

And while all of this is very moving and involving, towards the latter part of the movie everything really kind of sinks. A plot turn is handled very messily and our feelings toward certain characters are almost turned on their head. And the ending is empty, trying to tie up everything but tying up nothing.

One aspect of the film that I must mention is the cinematography, which is excellent, especially towards the end of the film. Also, the editing, also near the end, is wonderful. The editing of Maria thinking back to what happened to her is superb.

Pascal, the Police Inspector, is a very nice character who is very chipper. The `evil cop' character seems a little over done, but at the same time you never think what he does cannot or hasn't already happened in real-life, and I'm sure, sadly, it has.

While the film isn't terrible, and does have it's good moments, I can't really recommend this ultimately empty experience.

6/10