A Prophet (2009)

DVD CASE/ SIDE

Length of film:  155 Minutes

Rated: 18

Genre: Drama, Crime

Director: Jacques Audiard

Starring: Tahar Rahim, Niels Arestrup, Adel Bencherif, Reda Kateb, Hichem Yacoubi, Jean-Phillippe Ricci

IMDB Rank: 7.8/ 10

Part 1 Time:  94 Minutes

Part 2 Time:  61 Minutes

Where does the first part end? Malik El Djebena (Tahar Rahim) looks out the window of his cell toward cell block B.

Final line of dialogue on the first part: The final line of dialouge happens two minutes before the end of the first half, as Malik envisions César Luciani (Niels Arestrup) speaking to him stating; “People look at you and see me. Otherwise what would they see? Can you tell me?

First line of dialogue on the second part: Outside in the prison yard, César Luciani calls out to Malik El Djebena, “Come here, Isn’t this enough? Come here I said. I have something funny to tell you.”

How jarring is it when the first part ends? Minimal, with most of the high ranking Corsicans now transferred to another prison, Malik has now become the eyes and ears for César. His added responsibilities have now made him an important inmate within the prison, especially within the Corsican faction. However the other prison faction (the Maghrebi) do not trust Malik even tho he is of Algerian descent. Can Malik continue to balance between both factions?

Which part is better? The film shows the brutality of prison including the corruption among prison staff and rivalries between factions. Part two is better as Malik begins making moves to better own personal enterprise and build his street cred.

Academy Awards: 2010 Best Foreign Language Film (Nominated).

Other Awards: 2010 BAFTA- Best Film Not in the English Language (Winner); 2009 Cannes- Palme d’Or (Nominated), Grand Prize of the Jury (Winner); 2010 Golden Globes- Best Foreign Language Film (Nominated).