Sueurs

This is strange film. I was drawn to it because I usually like anything with Jean-Hugues Anglade in it. With the added bonus of Joaquim de Almeida, it had to be worth a look.

There is little attempt made to give the viewer any background or put us at a place in time. We know nothing about the main characters, don't know where they are, we just know they have stolen a large quantity of gold (we don't see the robbery) and we don't know that for about 20 minutes. Basically they are just tearing across a desert in a huge tank transporter and being attacked.

The rest of the film covers their journey to the coast to meet a ship. Inevitably they all fall out. I won't give any more away.

I really enjoyed. The performances are undisciplined, almost manic at times. The photography is pretty spectacular and very real (loads of in-cab stuff on the vehicles). It's also pretty violent.

If you get the chance, watch it. I don't think you'll be disappointed.

The film is a take on old adventure movies of the seventies, usually featuring Lino Ventura or other French heroes. The beginning is quite slow and even boring : the characters lack dimension and the direction shows off a bit in the Michael Bay tradition (something that will make nowadays movie look dated in a short amount of time.) But after the first half an hour, the film picks up, the characters gets some interest and you wind up really engrossed in this chase, though the scenario remains by-the-numbers. JH Anglade & company all bring out their hysterical best and, in the unnamed country where the action takes place, there are enough weirdo characters (The gas station owner.) and strange happenings to keep you on your seat. The final image is a great way to end a movie which just keeps on gathering speed until the end. Definitely worth a look.

Let us make things clear: that film is NOT to be watched with your girlfriend; NOT to be watched by former Air Traffic controllers and NOT to be watched on Sundays and religious holidays. You come home at 8 p.m., you have worked hard, you are dog-tired - that is the perfect atmosphere to watch Sueurs. Much was said about the cinematography (great, indeed), about the actors, the desert itself. But, you know, what makes this a real gem is its perfect balance. "Arty", manic moments mix with furious action, greed turns into violence, west transforms into east and back again. Can't say there is much more to the film than pure style, though.

I think critics of this film have the wrong approach. It isn't highbrow, or even pretending to be, it may to some be a waste of good actors, but I couldn't care less because I think it is great. There are times when I just want to switch off and be entertained by a mindless action movie, and this one not only delivers, but is pleasantly far from mindless.

We do see the robbery in flashes during the opening credits, the airport crew get shot and the flatbed driving away from the empty plane. On a side note I thought the music here was excellent. There are four main characters who have pulled off the job - the organiser, the driver, the mechanic and the gunman, all of whom are unhinged in some way and whose worst sides come out as events conspire to stop them making their deadline for converting the gold into cash.

But the biggest character is the desert itself. It's beautifully shot, really getting across the effect of the harsh environment on the crew as they begin to bicker and fall out. You know it will descend into violence but it is fun getting there - although the characters are shallow the mind play between them is still very interesting as their quirks and psychotic tendencies emerge and set each other off. I like the black humour of old French action movies so I didn't care how derivative it was here, it was good to see it again and a refreshing break from some Hollywood offerings, nor did it have their tendency to moralise or patronise. You won't have to be Sherlock to figure out what's coming but it's fun finding out and there were still a few surprises.

Sit back and enjoy the ride.

If you crossed Wages of Fear with Killing Zoe you might end up with something like SWEAT. The plot involves four crooks who hi-jack a truck load of gold from an airport.Then they drive it across the desert. The North African desert, to be precise. They drive that truck over an endless vista of sun baked sand dunes. The location photography is stunning. As the heat works on them the men start to turn on each other. (Maybe there is a bit of Treasure of Sierra Madre in there too.) Jean-Hughes Anglade gives another of his patented ferocious Frenchman performances. Joachim de Almeida plays the Air Traffic Controller who plans the heist. The director shoots everything as if he were overdosing on amphetamines. The editing is similarly jagged. But the overdose of style clashes somewhat with the material.I had to watch it twice to digest all of the information thrown at me. Still a great thriller in the Gallic tradition, complete with excellent downbeat ending.