Stéphane has recently joined the Anti-Crime Squad in Montfermeil, in the suburbs of Paris, France, where Victor Hugo set his famed novel “Les Miserables”. Alongside his new colleagues Chris and Gwada – both experienced members of the team – he quickly discovers tensions running high between local gangs. When the trio finds themselves overrun during the course of an arrest, a drone captures the encounter, threatening to expose the reality of everyday life.
Direction
Ladj Ly's debut burns with authentic fury and documentary precision.
Cinematography
Drone shots that haunt—surveillance beauty masking ugly truths.
Acting
Damien Bonnard's eyes carry the whole damn moral weight.
Director
Ladj Ly
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Ly grew up in Montfermeil and filmed in his own neighborhood; many 'actors' are actual residents. The tension you feel? That's lived memory, not performance.
The title's deliberate provocation: Hugo's 19th-century Parisian poor become 21st-century banlieue youth, proving France's 'liberté, égalité, fraternité' remains unfinished business.
FR
