Rent Les Misérables (2019)

Dreary documentary-style social realism - Les Misérables review by Alphaville

First of all, yes, you can watch this film with English subtitles and without commentary; just choose from the set-up screen.

It’s a docu-style drama set in the black community of the seedy Paris banlieus (suburbs). We follow a couple of equally seedy cops as they trawl around in their car butting in on street confrontations of one sort or another. As it’s “inspired” by the 2005 riots, you’ll soon see where it’s heading, but it takes a whole 50mins to reach a dramatic incident that amounts to anything more than local colour.

Despite the clichéd environment and plot predictability, it could yet have been interesting with a good director at the helm. Unfortunately writer/director Ladj Ly, who has made previous documentaries on the subject and been imprisoned for kidnapping, has nothing new to say on the matter and no idea on how to shoot a film. This is just an exercise in slice-of-life shaky-cam aesthetics. If anything, it’s UNdirected.

Naturally it won a prize at Cannes, but not from the audience. Not even a few Lloyd Webber anthems could save this Miserables. Congrats to anyone who can keep their finger off the FF button. To see how it should be done, watch the brilliant TV series Spiral.

All action stereotypes - Les Misérables review by JS

Firstly let me note that there are no subtitles to this film unless you choose to watch it with the audio commentary on. Really odd, but eventually listening to the French for emphasis, the English for detail and the subtitles for a translation becomes a non issue.

It is all action and engaging but, the French police are brutal, the inhabitants of the banlieue are black criminals so you enjoy the film but with some degree of being uncomfortable.

Worth watching for the young actors/extras and would certainly have got 4* if it wasn't for the adherence to classic French cop films.

OK French Cop Drama - Les Misérables review by GI

French cop drama that attempts to be more than a standard police procedural and delves into the social, moral and legal issues of policing in the projects of Paris where multi racial communities struggle with the authorities, self declared leaders and youth crime. The story centres around a three man police team the Special Crime Unit and follows the first day of new arrival Ruiz (Damien Bonnard). He is less than impressed with the casual corruption, bullying and abuse of authority his new colleagues employ in the cause of gaining respect. When the arrest of a young teenager goes awry they try to cover up their mistakes and have to face the consequences. The trouble here is that the film glides over the surface of the issues but never gets to grips with them. There is no redeeming qualities in any of the characters here from the police, parents, religious leaders and local people, all are shown as contemptuous. This makes for a cold film that is, by the end, unfulfilling.

Angry French action film with little to say - Les Misérables review by AER

Like its closed-mouthed subjects, Les Miserables is an aggressive, authentic, and lively film. It runs along at a fair clip and is never less than involving. I'd heard comparisons to La Haine, but this is more like Training Day. It follows the first day of a newly-transferred cop (Ruiz) to an inner-city neighbourhood of Paris where he is on the front line. The new guy clashes with his new team and residents made up of immigrants and French people of Algerian, African, and Caribbean descent, and quite quickly a plot emerges where the theft of a lion cub from a gypsy's circus escalates into a siege. It's astonishing and wrought, but doesn't have time to dig too deep into the characters - which is OK - but would have elevated this film even higher.

The confusing comments about the audio tracks/subtitles are nonsense. If you watch it in French there ARE subtitles, why would you want to watch a film dubbed badly into English anyway? The best way is always 'Original' language - then you can see it as it the filmmaker intended. It also develops your speed-reading (LOL)

Mirror of our society - Les Misérables review by CSF

The film is quite a docu fiction. Remarkable, and I wondered if the actors were really actors, they were so good. It is not a politicaly correct film so, some people might find it disturbing. It does emphasize the fact that violence is everywhere, black or white, police or civile. It shows that it is our society today that turns people mad. There are black sheep in the police but after years and years of fighting 'evil', it rubs off. The new ones are more human but for how long? Islam takes the place abandonned by the Church, the schools walk on eggs, the Police is worn out. this is roughly the situation the film shows in the '93' department, outside Paris. The film should be shown in all schools, to have a discussion with the teachers after. The reason that there are more black baddies is simply because it takes place in a black area. Many films of that type are about white baddies.

On some machines, you can't get the subtitles and you can't get rid of the audio. Pity.