Maryland

Matthias Schoenaerts plays Vincent, a soldier who has returned from Afghanistan and is now suffering Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). He is signed off from duties and so gets to work as a hired security guard. One of his friends gets him a gig working for a wealthy, but decidedly shady, Lebanese businessman.

Once there he becomes enamoured with his very attractive wife (Diane Kruger) and ends up being assigned to watch over her as a personal bodyguard. He is still dealing with PTSD and the effects of having served as Special Forces and so is on edge and sees danger where it may not be. However, he soon feels that she and her son are under threat and then – well it all kicks off but to say anymore would be a plot spoiler.

Now the part of Vincent was written with Schoenaerts in mind and he does a very good job indeed (I have PTSD so could spot some of the subtleties) but the tension and atmosphere that is engendered at the beginning then starts to fade as the plot reveals itself. The story is fairly good though and the ending may bemuse some but the overall journey is one that is worth the effort. In French with good sub titles this will appeal to lovers of thrillers but it is not one that is too taxing on the intellect.

This is not your usual "home invasion" film.It's above all an incredible sensory experience.Alice Winocur (who directed 2 years ago the magnificent "Augustine") creates a great combo between drama & paranoid thriller.And don't expect a love story ala Bodyguard. Matthias Schoenaerts is phenomenal as usual.It's quite an intense performance.You're truly seeing things through the eyes of his emotionally damaged character. Diane Kruger is also solid but the movie truly belongs to King Matthias.The ending could have been slightly better but it doesn't take anything away from the quality of the film. The soundtrack is also very catchy : Gaffelstein is a genius ! He creates a very atmospheric environment. A must see !

When I review this one, I think of Tony Scott's MAN ON FIRE - it self a remake of an Elie Chouraqui's film starring Scott Glenn - and of course the coming soon Florent Emilio Siri's ELYAS, starring Roschdy Zem in a seemingly EQUALIZER or JOHN WICK like character. A former special forces soldier become a bodyguard for a wealthy family and who will have to face many dangers towards this same family - beautiful wife and - or - kid. But the movie I review now is only a bit action oriented, however not that much, it is more focused on the psychological matter, character relationship study. But it is directed by a woman, with a great dose of sensitivity, evoking the post war traumatic disorder. Unlike what the Florent Emilio Siri's film trailer suggests. ELYAS - which I will comment, don't worry - will be far more focused on the action packed stuff, as was his famous NID DE GUEPES. So, this very movie MARYLAND is a hell of a film, especially from a woman director. A wonderful little gem, offering a terrific performance from Mathias Schoendaerts. Excellent action sequences, especially a very brutal, bloody one. It was shot in Saint Jean Cap ferrat - south of France, French riviera - a town where you have hundreds of huge, gigantic billionaires villas and castles, fancy mansions mostly owned by Russian oligarchs and other wealthy, very very wealthy, businessmen whose "affairs" are far from being so legal...If you know what I mean. So, watching this movie reminds me my vacation site, and I am not a very wealthy business man !!!!

In a twist on the story of a combat veteran with post-traumatic stress disorder attempting to adjust to civilian life, director Alice Winocour realigns the balance of the narrative to focus as much on romance and one woman's perspective as action and a psychologically wounded man.

Vincent takes odd jobs as he lobbies to return to combat as a soldier. Despite its inherent dangers, combat at least is a place where he has a mission and purpose. Civilian life is not so kind. It is confusing, degrading and offers little in the way of sympathy for what Vincent has been through. A side job as part of a security team, together with his military pals, takes Vincent to a mansion, party and pretty woman who attracts his eyes and focus. In the ensuing days Vincent is drawn into a personal security detail for her. When she is targeted for kidnapping, the pair must draw upon not just Vincent's military training, but upon their basic qualities as human beings. Because each of them has moved in different spheres until then, this may not work so well.

The sound selections and wounded hero narrative are reminiscent of the Nicolas Winding Refn films that I love. However, Winocour cannot quite match Refn's levels of tension, chemistry and spectacle. I admire the acting of Matthias Schoenaerts and he does not disappoint here. While the film has some potential to live up to, there is ample suspense and intrigue inside the characters and the scenes that envelop them. Seen at the 2016 Miami International Film Festival.

Disorder (2015)

Alice Winocour's thriller set in upper class France is filled with anxiety, and is filmed very smartly to increase that stress without resorting to pyrotechnics. Quietly, especially because of the edgy psychological performance by Matthias Schoenaerts, we feel the anxiety of an ex-soldier fighting PTSD and still doing private high brow security work.

The setting is interesting but the plot is thin. This can work for the film, which depends on lots of quiet moments to punch up the drama when it occurs. The direction is really good, with some simple strategies at play. Example—when our main character, who is guarding someone off in the distance, is sensing danger, his eyes flit around, he stiffens up and walks and look, but the one thing the camera doesn't do is show us the person he's protecting. In the dark, we worry, and we don't know if the danger is real or if he's just too high strung.

Seeing the inside of a high level security detail is nice, and it's handled with good realism. The whole movie, in fact, depends on a simple believability that typical Hollywood versions would ramp up, and it works.

The big downside here is the writing. There isn't enough to the overall plot after all (and Schoenaerts can't do everything). And some of the dialog is unlikely or a big out off kilter. Sucked into the mis-en-scene, you can go with it, at least until the long stretch at the end in the house, when you do wish it hadn't trapped itself into a series of well worn ideas.

The last several seconds of the movie do show that the director/writer is capable of more than you'll find here. It might be unexplained, but it leaves at least still immersed as you leave the film's finely rendered world.