When one scribe likened ‘A Prophet’ to the ‘The Godfather’ many scoffed. It is always a big risk to liken a modern film to a cinema classic, but in this case it is the right move because it is not hard to tell that ‘A Prophet’ will become a classic in it’s own right. With the power and grit of other modern classics like ‘The Pusher’ and ‘Gomorroh’ this is one film that deserves to be a favorite come Oscar night.
‘A Prophet’ tells the story of Malk El Djebana (Tahir Rahim – ‘The 9/11 Commission Report’, ‘A linterieur’), a part Arab, part Corsican illiterate petty-thief who finds himself sentenced to six year in jail. At just 19 Malik is very much an ‘innocent’ in a hardened prison, and he soon realises that if he wants to survive in this environment he needs to align himself with one of the prison gangs. His mind is made up for him when the leader of Corsican gang, Cesar (Niels Arestrup – ‘Le scaphandre et le papillon’, ‘Le part animale’) asks him to run ‘missions’ for him, things that Malik see as learning curves.
Director Jacques Audiard (‘De batte mon couer s’est arrete’, ‘Sur mes leves’) proves why he is one of France’s (I would argue one of the world’s) best directors by refusing to reign in ‘A Prophet’. This film needs to be brutal. Prison is not a nice place and Audiard is well in his rights to make this film as graphic as he wishes. The audience will see it all from male nudity to brutal slayings, but by not doing so Audiard would have lost the sense of realism that shines through in this film.
‘A Prophet’ is also brilliantly cast. Tahir Rahim is a breath of fresh air in acting circles. He is everything that you demand from a leading man. He puts the character of Malik trhough a range of emotions, and it works wonderfully well. The script allows Malik to evolve and Rahim takes the viewer on that journey in a way very few Hollywood actors would be able to do.
Also brilliant is Niels Arestrup who has a commanding presence in the role of Cesar. His strong performance deserves to attract award’s buzz and each scene he shares with Rahim is a reminder of just how important strong performances are in cinema. The power generated between the two is electrifying.
‘A Prophet’ is a tough, yet rewarding watch for its audience. With its brutal realism, amazing script and powerful acting performances it is destined to become a modern classic… certainly one of the films of the year.
Year: 2009
Director: Jacques Audiard
Stars: Tahir Rahim, Niels Arestrup
Classification: MA15+
Runtime: 91 mins
Rating: 