Mesrine

[Serge]

I don't think there ever was a thread for this, but hey ho. Over the last two nights, I've watched both parts of Jean-François Richet's epic gangster movie, 'Mesrine', and I have to say: Flipping heck, it's good. Obviously, like most gangster movies, it's morally dubious, as you find yourself vaguely rooting for someone who is actually a deeply unpleasant person, but if you can get over that - and I usually can - it's an amazing film. It works well on DVD, especially if you have two consecutive nights free to treat yourself to the whole thing, as I just have.

Obviously, the story of his rampages across France and Canada is pretty spectacular in itself, and was crying out for an epic of this kind, and luckily, the film lives up to the life. Vincent Cassel is naturally utterly fantastic in the title role, inhabiting Mesrine from cocky young hoodlum just out of the army to the older, slightly unhinged babbling alleged revolutionary. It's the role of a lifetime, and Cassel is excellent thoughout.

And the supporting cast is great - Gerard Depardieu, now approaching Mr Creosote size as the menacing mentor Guido, Roy Dupuis as fellow criminal Mercier, Cécile De France channelling Ulrike Meinhof as Jeanne, and Olivier Gourmet as the dogged Broussard. But best of the lot, and almost stealing the second film from Cassel is Mathieu Amalric as the intense and extremely dangerous Besse. I have to admit, I didn't even know he was in the film, so when his name came up in the opening titles, I almost jumped for joy.

Obviously, there's a lot of extremely brutal violence in it, but there are also several very effectively tense scenes (I'm not going to give away much of the plot, the less you know, the more you'll enjoy it, although the ending is given away over the opening titles of the first film). It looks amazing throughout, Cassel sports some outrageous facial hair in the name of disguise (

Spoiler alert

and also goes bald at one point!

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) and the music is great too.

If I can make one complaint, it's that one scene set in London goes for all the cliches - two bobbies walking past, a red bus if I remember, and the most 'gorblimey missus' news vendor I've ever heard. And if the story sometimes seems a little bit too good to be true, you have to bear in mind that it is based on Mesrines own self-mythologising unreliable memoirs.

So, top notch stuff all round, really. Anyone else a fan? (Or not?)

[Crabwalk]

I've nothing much to add to that, but to echo Serge's enthusiasm. These films are immensely entertaining. My jaw kept dropping at his exploits, as I hadn't heard of the guy before the films were released. How is he not better known outside of France?

Cassel really is one of his generation's greatest actors, and there must be a 2011 Best Supporting Actor nomination due for his hair. If you're a fan of the 'Rise and Fall of a Gangster' genre you will love this, erm, duology.

[Vitalstatistix]

I thoroughly enjoyed Part 1 and hated Part 2, which I have to admit probably sounds pretty ridiculous considering it was essentially (I think) just one big film cut in two.

Maybe I was in a bad mood for part 2 but I genuinely thought it was terrible, but I can't really remember my reasons now. Did anyone else find a disparity in quality between the two?

[SavageHedgehog]

This isn't a particularly insightful comment, as I haven't seen these films (I plan to do so when I see them at a price I want to buy them at*) but I just googled pictures of Depardieu in this film, and I love the guy but wow, he is huge. I mean there always used to be "jokes" about how it was strange he was such a sex symbol given his weight, but that was back when he was only a little portly. Did he even have to bother with a fat suit for the last Asterix/Obelix movie? His AlexanderDumas bio thing looks good though.

*Although I might buckle at current prices, as I know have a worryingly strong desire to see CreosoteDepardieu in action

[Shoulders?-Stomach!]

They're an absolute blast. The thing is, at points it tricks you into thinking you're watching something more substantial, and then it catches you unawares with a sequence of jaw-droppingly fun, completely unrealistic action scenes.

[rovert]

Maybe I was in a bad mood for part 2 but I genuinely thought it was terrible, but I can't really remember my reasons now. Did anyone else find a disparity in quality between the two?

There is a remember a reviewer rather harshly refer to Part 2 as the "deleted scenes."

[Santa's Boyfriend]

What's up with the mum watering down her wine?  I just couldn't go with the film after that.  It was completely ridiculous.

Spoiler alert

Joking, I loved the films.  A friend didn't though - she found the character of Jaques so unpleasant that she just wanted him to die.

[close]

[Serge]

I thoroughly enjoyed Part 1 and hated Part 2, which I have to admit probably sounds pretty ridiculous considering it was essentially (I think) just one big film cut in two.

Maybe I was in a bad mood for part 2 but I genuinely thought it was terrible, but I can't really remember my reasons now. Did anyone else find a disparity in quality between the two?

I was a bit disconcerted at the beginning, as I presumed we would see how he got back from Canada to France, but you're pretty much thrown in at the deep end without even so much as a 'Two Years Later' (or however long it was) card. But once I got to grips with that, I found Part Two just as good, though his increasing craziness does give it a darker tone than the more 'gangster larks!' style of the first. As I mentioned above, for me, the presence of Mathieu Amalric was probably enough to make me slightly prefer Part 2.

*Although I might buckle at current prices, as I know have a worryingly strong desire to see CreosoteDepardieu in action

I paid a tenner for the pair in HMV, so I'm sure you can get them cheaper online! Do it! You won't regret it.

They're an absolute blast. The thing is, at points it tricks you into thinking you're watching something more substantial, and then it catches you unawares with a sequence of jaw-droppingly fun, completely unrealistic action scenes.

There were a few times when I thought, "Hang on...", especially during the

Spoiler alert

prison break

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sequences, though as they did actually happen, and were presumably witnessed by other people, I was prepared to give them the benefit of the doubt. The way the scene with

Spoiler alert

the journalist being tortured and shot towards the end did make me think, "How can he possibly have survived that?", as he appears to get shot in the head - and yes, I know people have survived that - but it looked pretty final in the film!

[close]

Though again, that really happened too. (

Spoiler alert

The journalist in question is still alive, apparently.

[close]

)

[SavageHedgehog]

I paid a tenner for the pair in HMV, so I'm sure you can get them cheaper online! Do it! You won't regret it.

I caved in at HMV yesterday. I've been wanting to see this for ages, but somehow finding out about massive-sized GD is what caused me to cave in. I'm not sure what that says about me, and I don't want to know, but at least my asinine fascinations are leading to respectable films for once.

[non capisco]

but you're pretty much thrown in at the deep end

Similarly I loved how the timelines of both films jump forward ages without tipping you off, so it looks at the beginning of the first like Mesrine has fathered three children in about a week. There's also that scene where he just walks past one of his girlfriends for the first time and in the very next shot she's robbing a bank with him.

[Funcrusher]

I thoroughly enjoyed Part 1 and hated Part 2, which I have to admit probably sounds pretty ridiculous considering it was essentially (I think) just one big film cut in two.

I felt the same. I had been really looking forward to these based on the trailers, and did enjoy part 1, but for me the overall problems with the film became more apparent in part 2. It's very episodic and doesn't really seem to have a clear enough idea about what made Mesrine tick or why he's an interesting figure, other than his having busted out of jail x number of times, robbed banks etc. So it becomes a series of prison breakouts and heists and not a lot else.

[lipsink]

I found it enjoyable but all very silly. I laughed quite a bit during the

Spoiler alert

prison break in

[close]

and at a lot of the performances. I similarly got a bit bored at the robbery/chase/breakout/weird wig/beard/new girlfriend episodic nature which seemed neverending. Enjoyable though. Is Cassel still doing Hollywood stuff?

[SavageHedgehog]

Yes, and doing very well it would seem; he has the next films by Darren Aronofsky, David Cronenberg and Andrew Niccol on his plate. For years it seemed he, Depardieu and Jean Reano were on speed dial whenever Hollywood needed to cast a character that fit the description "French man" (Cassel also has "Russian man" on his resume)

[Serge]

Jean Reno is actually Spanish, of course, though probably now more french than many french people.

I like your new avatar, Funcrusher - I really must re-read some of my Derek Raymond books...

[Funcrusher]

I like your new avatar, Funcrusher - I really must re-read some of my Derek Raymond books...

I hadn't expected anyone here to recognise him. I tip my beret to you sir.

[Serge]

Ha! Thanks. I remember gunning through the Factory books at a rate of one a day during a week off several years ago. Like quite a few people, I suspect, I was pointed in his direction by the spoken word version of 'Dora Suarez' that he made with some of the members of Gallon Drunk. I should give that a listen again. And my Gallon Drunk records, come to that.

[non capisco]

I was laughing out loud at the end of 'I Was Dora Suarez' it was so grimly OTT. I've lent that book out to scores of people to see what they make of it. I think my favourite one of his is possibly 'A State Of Denmark', although all of the Factory series I've read have been great, although reading 'How The Dead Live' at a particularly low emotional ebb didn't do wonders for me. That and 'Nightmare In The Street' are the two most uniquely depressing crime novels I've ever read. 'I Am Dora Suarez', famed for making his then-publisher supposedly vomit over his desk and refuse to take it on which has to be an aprocryphal tale but is still faintly believable, is just too out there to take seriously.

I think the only one of his I haven't read is 'Dead Man Upright' which was the fifth and final Factory book and by all accounts including Raymond's own isn't all that, but then where the hell do you go after Dora Suarez?