FILM REVIEW: A PROPHET

First off I hope everyone out there had a fantastic Christmas. And now as we look to finalize this year I wanted to get back to posting a film review. With very much thanks going to my amazing Netflix subscription I can watch films instantly over my computer or laptop where ever I am at.

The film I screened was entitled "A PROPHET"it is a foreign film with subtitles, which can be difficult for some to stay connected with the visuals as they have to read what each character is saying. In the case of A PROPHET though I think people will easily be able to do both this story is that good.

A PROPHET is the story off nineteen year-old Franco-Arab Malik El Djebena who is just starting his six year prison sentence in Brécourt. Although he has spent the better part of his life in juvenile detention, this stint is his first in an adult prison. Beyond the division of Corsicans and Muslims in the prison (the Corsicans who with their guard connections rule what happens in the prison), he has no known friends or enemies inside. He is just hoping to serve his time in peace and without incident, despite having no prospects once he's out of jail since he's illiterate and has no support outside of the prison. Due to logistics, the head of Corsican inmates, a sadistic mafioso named César Luciani, co-opts Malik as part of the Corsicans' activities, not only regarding what happens inside the prison, but also continued criminal activities outside. The innocent Malik has no idea what to do but cooperate. This move does not sit well with the other Corsicans... Written by Huggo

This film was Written by Thomas Bidegain and Jauques Audiard with the original screenplay coming from Abdel Raouf Dafari and Nicolas Peufaillit, Directed by Audiard, Produced by Lauranne Bourrachot, Martine Cassinelli, and Marco Cherqui, from Why not Productions 2009.

In any film I love it when they can take me to another place, maybe I have a thing for escapism or wanting to lead another life and through films I get that opportunity. Whatever it my be the key to any film is to have the viewer suspend disbelief and get involved emotionally with the visuals on the screen.

Here I was taken to a place I've seen captured in numerous other films and shows yet the approach taken by these filmmaker made the experience and the danger all very new and made for a more intense ride than even I expected.

Further more A PROPHET made its characters more human than in many crime genre films I have seen as of late by delving deep into how the roller coaster of emotions lingered and played with our main character's mind. Also I appreciated how they depicted the evolution of the main character as he grew from each dramatic element to the next becoming something that he was not at the beginning of the film.

Cinematically A PROPHET was shot very straight forward with the exception of a few dream like sequences showing the characters inner emotions or thought process. I also have to mention the typographical elements used to introduce characters and time as chapter headings through out the film were done very creatively.

Overall this is a very intelligent film and definitely not typically what you'd find in the crime/prison genre. This was a very refreshing film that I would definitely suggest to friends and even enjoy watching again, so with that said I give A PROPHET four stars.

LETS GET IT!!!