In Paris during WWII, an Algerian immigrant is inspired to join the resistance by his unexpected friendship with a Jewish man.
Unfortunately, director Ismaël Ferroukhi’s film is let down somewhat by a lack of dramatic tension and a protagonist not fleshed out enough to engender the audience’s sympathy.
Modest in both budget and impact, it’s nonetheless intelligently executed.
Ismaël Ferroukhi’s picture could do with tighter plotting, while the secondary characters are a bit underwritten, but Rahim reasserts himself as a compelling actor after the stilted nonsense of Black Gold.
Michael Lonsdale provides his usual elegant, elder statesman turn, this time as a religious leader, but it's Rahim's performance that grabs the attention and never lets go.
It’s really A Prophet star Tahar Rahim’s ability to command the screen with few words that makes this slow-burning tale more engaging than it would otherwise have been.
We weren’t expecting The Sorrow and the Pity, but stronger emphasis on historical truth would shore up this admirable revisionist fable.
The atmosphere of suspicion is well-handled, all the same, and its foreshadowing of a later Algerian struggle with the mother country is poignant.
The tension doesn't grip as it should, but it's a worthwhile reminder of a moment of Muslim-Jewish co-operation.
Much like the recent spate of war films such as Army of Crime, Flame & Citron and Max Manus, it’s all terribly worthy but not particularly user-friendly, with Rahim’s character lacking any real depth.
It may lack the punch of his turn in A Prophet, but Rahim again dominates the screen in an effective wartime thriller.
Free Men: another painful perspective on the Nazi occupation of France
Edinburgh Filmhouse, Edinburgh from Friday June 1, 2012, until Thursday June 14, 2012. More info: www.filmhousecinema.com
Glasgow Film Theatre, Glasgow from Friday June 1, 2012, until Thursday June 7, 2012. More info: http://www.glasgowfilm.org/theatre/