Mesrine: Public Enemy #1

Mesrine: Public Enemy #1

Director: Jean-François Richet.
Written By: Abdel Raouf Dafri & Jean-François Richet. 
Photography: Robert Gantz.
Starring: Vincent Cassel, Mathieu Amalric, Ludivine Sagnier.
Year 2008.
Country: France, Canada.




 Last week I reveiwed Mesrine: Killer Instinct and I really loved it. I ended the review by saying that I hope   the second part of the film, Public Enemy #1 is as good. Well I've seen it now, and you know what? it is! 


 I don't need to go to much in to the story, it's just a continuation of the last film, following the life of infamous French gangster, Jacques Mesrine. (Pronounced, May-reen) 

 I won't go too much in to Vincent Cassel either, because I think I've praised him enough already.  All you need to know is he's as good in this as he is in Mesrine: Killer Instinct and anything else he's been in. 


 Another of France's best actors joins the cast, Diving Bell and the Butterfly actor Mathieu Amalric. Who was also the villain in Quantum of Solace, which you might not remember due to Quantum of Solace was such a forgettable film. 


 Mesrine: Public Enemy #1 isn't as ambitious as film as it's predecessor aesthetically speaking, though saying that the direction and photography are still both above par. This film embarrasses it's French heritage, there's some À Bout de Souffle style editing, which still gains the same mixed reactions as it did in 1960. 


 Although he hasn't built up much of a filmography, I really like Jean-François Richet. He's a good person to point out to Michael Bay apologists, who believe that action films or blockbusters can't be visceral, meaningful or interesting. I also enjoyed his remake of Assault on Precinct 13 (though not as much as the John Carpenter original, obviously)


Mesrine: Public Enemy #1 is a rewarding conclusion to the Mesrine story. A triumph of style and substance, these films are a staple in the career of everybody involved. 


Score: 4.5/5