Public Enemy No. 1 - Mordinstinkt

We could argue for hours about the point that Richet is trying to make, is he simply celebrating and glamorizing the crazy life of Jacques Mesrine ? Is he trying to say something about the increasing presence of big brother in western countries (the patriot act in the US, cameras everywhere in the UK or the french debate about listings of people etc...)wish supposedly smothers us and would render the existence of men like Mesrine an impossibility? But in the end who cares ? The movie is an absolutely brilliant genre movie, with amazing actors at their best, an incredible recreation of seventies France, very realistic and visceral action scenes (all based on facts by the way !), and Richet's directing is very controlled, precise, you feel he knows what he wants, sort of the anti-Brett Ratner if you will, and the ambiance is spot on too. Time flew so fast when was watching the film, and now i just can't wait for the follow up which should arrive in 2009. truly great stuff !

Every once in a while a part comes along that is cast so well it's as if the actor was born to play and will forever be remembered for that role. Vincent Cassels portrayal of Frances public enemy number one, Jacques Mesrine, is one such role. Funny, disturbing, charming, psychotic and more Cassel is the larger than life criminal achieving a completely believable character study of someone the French press dubbed 'the man of a thousand faces' due to his ability to change his looks so often to evade the police. In fact the truth behind this most notorious of stories is so unbelievable at times that the filmmakers left parts out thinking the audience would think it was just too far fetched, in fact after watching the escapades of Mesrine I too thought 'all that couldn't have happened surely?' But after a little bit of homework I found that it did indeed all take place and after seeing the tale unfold you realise why Mesrine got his Monika. The film, told in two parts, opens with a brilliant seventies cop style feel and begins at the end before returning us to the start where we see a young Mesrine in the army fighting in the Algerian war, on his return to his native Paris he quickly becomes entangled with Guido a mafia boss played superbly by Gerard Depardieu (why had no one cast him in this kind of role before?) and over the course of the next four thrilling hours he rises to become the career criminal that became an embarrassment to the French police and government. Shot all grainy and washed out with an amazing attention to detail we follow Mesrine from bank robberies to kidnap, general violence to daring prison escapes and in a complete juxtaposition we see the family man, the charmer and the comedian. Hailed by some as a kind of Robin Hood figure the film never judges either way and gives you enough information for you to make up your own mind but of course with a figure so complex it's hard when the lines blur. He obviously loves his children doting on them in one scene but in another he smashes a glass in a man's face and beats and leaves a journalist for dead after he wrote a disparaging article about him. What doesn't help is that a lot of what happens is taken from the book Mesrine wrote in prison 'Killer Instinct' a work that he himself has said was slightly exaggerated to make him seen more notorious than he actually was. Overall though the film is a thrill ride from start to finish and can hold its own with any of the great gangster epics. Stylish, violent and gob smacking, it's a must see and with the immersive bravado of Cassel as Mesrine this film will be one that will be held in high esteem for some time to come.

What is it with gangsters? I like watching gangster films and I don't care what sort of gangsters they are. Something about the bravado and living the high life seems to appeal and there is always an element of charisma about them. That's not to say I wish to be a gangster or to break the law, but the self confidence and the refusal to take sh** from anyone attitude is attractive. But, were I to be placed in a room with a genuine gangster, I'm certain I would be terrified and would want to get out of there ASAP.

The film opens with Mesrine making a decision whilst in the French army and in Algiers whether to follow his superior's orders to shoot the wife of a terrorist suspect or to shoot the suspect. This moment, as well as establishing that Mesrine has the killer instinct of the title, shows us that he is not one for conforming to authority, as he ignores his superior and takes the shot.

From that point, the film is episodic as it follows Mesrine from petty crime to audacious criminal exploits. Each episode showcases another aspect to Mesrine's multi-layered character. Yet, because they are episodic, some of Mesrine's character fails to carry over from one to the next. This presents a fairly schizophrenic view of him which could well be in keeping with his real-life persona.

However, many of the episodes do provide insights into why this particular person's journey took this particular route. Having left the army, Mesrine turns to petty crime with his friend. This leads him to more serious crime, working for a Parisian crime lord, brilliantly underplayed by Gerard Depardieu. His personal life also keeps pace with his professional ascension. He has an ill-fated romance with a prostitute and a holiday romance that becomes a marriage following a sojourn to Spain. The film also takes the time to illustrate the strained relationship Mesrine had with his parents, in particular his father. Far from coming from a broken home, Mesrine is clearly from a loving, if conservative, family. Only Mesrine's own inner rage, reminiscent of James Dean in Rebel Without a Cause, at his father's seeming lack of courage rocks that world.

It is easy to see how Mesrine captured the imaginations of so many. His charisma, very ably aided by Vincent Cassel's own screen presence, shines from the screen whether talking his way out of house or defiantly standing up to his brutal treatment when he is finally caught and incarcerated.

He was imprisoned and brutally treated, following a one man / one woman crime wave across the world and, as part of his escape plan he assured those helping him that he would return to break them out. It is testament to his stature that they believed him and it is testament to his word that that is exactly what he attempted. Throughout his return to facilitate the breakout, the film enters the realms of an action movie.

The exploits of Mesrine left me wondering just how much the makers had embellished, or Mesrine has embellished for that matter – the film is based on his memoir, or did this guy really do these things?

There is one thing that I do know about Mesrine: I can't wait to see part two!

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*REVIEW OF BOTH PARTS*

There is a short paragraph that opens both "Mesrine" films; the exact wording escapes me, but it says something like "no film can accurately portray the complexities of a human life". This seems to be a pre-emptive defense, as if Richet anticipates criticism for a lack of depth or some glaring omissions. After all, Jacques Mesrine is apparently still a famous name in France, and his public persona lives on. If even half his supposed exploits were true, the story would still be crying out for a definitive dramatisation. As such, Richet has wisely avoided making any real ethical judgements of Mesrine's character, focusing instead on the sex, violence and publicity that he thrived upon. But it's Vincent Cassel's committed and exuberant performance that develops this meat-and-potatoes content into an unbiased character study of excess and, over all, a very fine pair of movies.

"Mesrine" may not seem to be particularly even-handed at first because of the glamour, the wisecracks, and the endless charisma, all of which are drawn from the rich stylistic tradition of the Gangster Movie, and used very skilfully in its favour. The fast pace of the story ensures we are either seduced or repulsed by the central character, and rarely anywhere in between. Sympathy or pity is irrelevant, and he is too brutal and trigger-happy to be rooted for as a regular protagonist. The first film is the slicker of the two, and the more visually satisfying due to the wonderfully stylish recreation of early 60s Paris (and elsewhere). Cassel plays Mesrine with youthful vigour here. He's all style and brash confidence, as endearing a wiseguy as any of Scorcese's characters. It's "Goodfellas", in fact, that "Killer Instinct" is most reminiscent of, with its sharp-suited mobsters (including a brilliantly grizzled Gerard Depardieu) and episodic year-hopping narrative.

By the half-way point, Mesrine is still something of an enigma. It's only in "Public Enemy No. 1" that the pace slows down and we can see, through a few intimate and contemplative scenes, what he has sacrificed to live as a superlative criminal. "I wasn't much of a son, I'm not much of a father either." he says, while in disguise visiting his own ailing father in hospital. He gradually alienates his closest friends and accomplices by trying to maintain the outlandish public profile he cultivated, rambling pseudo-revolutionary politics to journalists and threatening to kill judges and destroy all maximum security prisons. The "Goodfellas" ensemble of the first part becomes the isolated, ego-driven "Scarface" of the second as Cassel skilfully matures his character into a man resigned to the fate he knows must be coming.

The over all impression left by "Mesrine" is that it manages to land successfully between crime thriller, gangster saga and character study. This is achieved by the virtue of a standout central performance, as well as Richet's shrewd application of an American film-making style to a very French story. It ought to go down among the top crime dramas of the decade, or at the very least raise the (already decent) international profile of its impressive leading man.

How do you recover from an American project that was received with mixed reactions to say the least (that would be the Assault on Precinct 13 remake)? Easy: go back to your home country (in this case France) and devote time to your real passion project, the one that can give you bona fide director credentials. That's exactly what Jean-François Richet did with Death Instinct, the remarkable first part in a two-movie story about famous French criminal Jacques Mesrine.

Like most other biopics, the film opens with the protagonist's death, and what a spectacular demise that is: gunned down by unidentified shooters in the middle of a crowded Parisian street. The story then flashes back to the early '60s, when Jacques (Vincent Cassel) returns home after a harrowing tour of duty in Algeria. Looking for work, he learns an old friend of his earns money on the side by carrying out certain "assignments" for a heavyweight (pun not intended) criminal known as Guido (Gérard Depardieu). At first, it's all fun and games, exotic holidays and beautiful women. Then, once Jacques gets married, his wife isn't quite happy with his lifestyle. The thing ends badly, and Mesrine continues his illegal career, toughening up after Guido is brutally murdered. Thus begins his successful series of bank robberies and scams that quickly lead him to becoming the most wanted man in France and prompt his brief stay in Canada. Even there, however, he just can's stay away from trouble.

Richet is certainly no Michael Mann (an obvious reference when it comes to the robbery scenes), but he tells the story with gusto and precision, staging the tale as if it were a traditional gangster movie: taste of power, discovery of the unpleasant consequences, fight until the end to reach the top. He deals with an impressive amount of material (and this is just Part One) and handles it so that even the merely explicative bits feel tense and exciting. From start to finish, Killer Instinct moves at a reasonably quick pace, asking the viewer for commitment and endurance, and deservedly so: it's one hell of a thrilling ride.

If one has to complain, it should be noted that the psychology of certain characters is a bit sketchy (Guido is really nothing more than the average gangster type), but that flaw is generally compensated by very solid acting. The most effective (and terrifying turn) is of course the one coming from Cassel, who was everyone's first and only choice for the leading role, according to cast and crew statements. Returning to the more troubled side that has been left pretty much unexplored since La Haine, he digs into Mesrine's dark psyche and re-emerges with a complex, chilling part that makes him deserving of the his widespread reputation as one of France's best young thespians.

As for the deliberately open ending, the final captions are clever but a bit smug: after revealing the fate of characters who won't return in the follow-up, the title card says "As for Jacques Mesrine... End of the first part". As if we didn't know that already.