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A friend of theirs, Abdel Ichaha, has been brutalized by the police shortly before the riot and lies in a coma. Vinz finds a policeman's .44 Magnum revolver, lost in the riot. He vows that if their friend dies from his injuries, he will use it to kill a cop, and when he hears of Abdel's death he fantasizes carrying out his vengeance.
A friend of theirs, Abdel Ichaha, has been brutalized by the police shortly before the riot and lies in a coma. Vinz finds a policeman's .44 Magnum revolver, lost in the riot. He vows that if their friend dies from his injuries, he will use it to kill a cop, and when he hears of Abdel's death he fantasizes carrying out his vengeance.


The three go through an aimless daily routine and struggle to entertain themselves, frequently finding themselves under police scrutiny. They take a train to Paris but encounter many of the same frustrations, and their responses to benign interactions with Parisians cause the situations to degenerate to gratuitous hostility. A run-in with sadistic Parisian plainclothes police, during which Saïd and Hubert are humiliated and physically abused, results in their missing the last train home and spending the night on the streets. They encounter a group of racist anti-immigrant skinheads who begin to beat Saïd and Hubert savagely, but Vinz's gun allows him to break up the fight and all the skinheads flee except one (portrayed by Kassovitz himself) who Vinz is about to execute in cold blood. His dream of revenge is thwarted by his reluctance to go through with the deed, and, cleverly goaded by Hubert, he is forced to confront the fact that his true nature is not the heartless gangster he poses as, and he lets the skinhead flee.
The three go through an aimless daily routine and struggle to entertain themselves, frequently finding themselves under police scrutiny. They take a train to Paris but encounter many of the same frustrations, and their responses to benign interactions with Parisians cause the situations to degenerate to gratuitous hostility. A run-in with sadistic Parisian plainclothes police, during which Saïd and Hubert are humiliated and physically abused, results in their missing the last train home and spending the night on the streets. They go to a roof-top from where they insult skinheads and policemen, before later encountering the same group of racist anti-immigrant skinheads who begin to beat Saïd and Hubert savagely, now that the balance of power has shifted. Vinz arrives and his gun allows him to break up the fight and all the skinheads flee except one (portrayed by Kassovitz himself) who Vinz is about to execute in cold blood. His dream of revenge is thwarted by his reluctance to go through with the deed, and, cleverly goaded by Hubert, he is forced to confront the fact that his true nature is not the heartless gangster he poses as, and he lets the skinhead flee.


Early in the morning, the trio return to the [[banlieue]] and split up to their separate homes, and Vinz, in a wise decision, turns the gun over to Hubert, relinquishing his destructive self-image and potentially opening the door to personal growth and a constructive future. However, Vinz and Saïd encounter a plainclothes policeman, whom Vinz had insulted earlier in the day whilst with his friends on a local rooftop. The policeman grabs and threatens Vinz, making reference to the earlier incident on the roof. Hubert rushes to their aid, but as the policeman holding Vinz taunts him with a loaded gun held to Vinz's head, the gun accidentally goes off, killing Vinz instantly. Hubert and the policeman slowly and deliberately point their guns at each other, and as the film cuts to Saïd closing his eyes and cuts to black, a shot is heard on the soundtrack, with no indication of who fired or who may have been hit. However, it can be noted that throughout the film, the gun in Vinz's possession is gradually unloaded through various non fatal firings and/or games of russian roulette (their "friend" Asterix had removed the bullets in the gun as a trick during the game and never replaced them), therefore making the gun unloaded when Vinz threatened to kill the skin head and when Hubert aimed it at the police officer (leading to speculation that Hubert was also killed at the end because his gun had no bullets and was a mere visual/psychological danger). This stand-off is underlined by a voice-over of Hubert's slightly modified opening lines ("''It's about a society in free fall...''"), underlining the fact that, as the lines say, ''jusqu'ici tout va bien'' (so far so good); ''i.e.'' all seems to be going relatively well until Vinz is killed, and from there no one knows what will happen, a microcosm of French society's descent through hostility into pointless violence.
Early in the morning, the trio return to the [[banlieue]] and split up to their separate homes, and Vinz, in a wise decision, turns the gun over to Hubert, relinquishing his destructive self-image and potentially opening the door to personal growth and a constructive future. However, Vinz and Saïd encounter a plainclothes policeman, whom Vinz had insulted earlier in the day whilst with his friends on a local rooftop. The policeman grabs and threatens Vinz, making reference to the earlier incident on the roof. Hubert rushes to their aid, but as the policeman holding Vinz taunts him with a loaded gun held to Vinz's head, the gun accidentally goes off, killing Vinz instantly. Hubert and the policeman slowly and deliberately point their guns at each other, and as the film cuts to Saïd closing his eyes and cuts to black, a shot is heard on the soundtrack, with no indication of who fired or who may have been hit. However, it can be noted that throughout the film, the gun in Vinz's possession is gradually unloaded through various non fatal firings and/or games of russian roulette (their "friend" Asterix had removed the bullets in the gun as a trick during the game and never replaced them), therefore making the gun unloaded when Vinz threatened to kill the skin head and when Hubert aimed it at the police officer (leading to speculation that Hubert was also killed at the end because his gun had no bullets and was a mere visual/psychological danger). This stand-off is underlined by a voice-over of Hubert's slightly modified opening lines ("''It's about a society in free fall...''"), underlining the fact that, as the lines say, ''jusqu'ici tout va bien'' (so far so good); ''i.e.'' all seems to be going relatively well until Vinz is killed, and from there no one knows what will happen, a microcosm of French society's descent through hostility into pointless violence.

Revision as of 22:36, 4 December 2011

Not to be confused with Haine (film).
La Haine
La Haine cover, with the tagline Jusqu'ici tout va bien… ("So far, so good…")
Directed byMathieu Kassovitz
Written byMathieu Kassovitz
Produced byChristophe Rossignon
StarringVincent Cassel
Hubert Koundé
Saïd Taghmaoui
CinematographyPierre Aïm
Edited byMathieu Kassovitz
Scott Stevenson
Music byAssassin
Distributed byCanal+
Release date
  • May 31, 1995 (1995-05-31)
Running time
98 minutes
CountryTemplate:Film France
LanguageFrench
Budget€2,590,000 [1]
Box office$309,811 (USA) [2]

La Haine (French pronunciation: [la ʔɛn], 'hatred') is a 1995 French black-and-white film written, co-edited, and directed by Mathieu Kassovitz. It is commonly released under its French title in the English-speaking world, although its American VHS release was entitled Hate. It is about three teenage friends and their struggle to live in the banlieues of Paris. The title derives from a line spoken by one of them, Hubert: "La haine attire la haine!", "hatred breeds hatred."

Plot

This film focuses on a single day in the lives of three friends in their early twenties, from immigrant families living in an impoverished multi-ethnic French housing project (a ZUP - zone d'urbanisation prioritaire) in the suburbs of Paris, in the aftermath of a riot. Vinz (Vincent Cassel), who is Jewish, is filled with rage. He sees himself as a gangster ready to win respect by killing a cop, and practices the role of Travis Bickle from the film Taxi Driver in the mirror. His attitude towards police, for instance, is a simplified, stylized blanket condemnation, even to individual policemen who make an effort to steer the trio clear of troublesome situations. Hubert (Hubert Koundé) is an Afro-French boxer and small time drug dealer, whose gymnasium was burned in the riots. The quietest, most thoughtful and wisest of the three, he sadly contemplates the ghetto and the hate around him. He expresses the wish to simply leave this decadent world of violence and hate behind him, but does not know how since he lacks the means to do so. Saïd - Sayid in some English subtitles - (Saïd Taghmaoui) is a Maghrebin who inhabits the middle ground between his two friends' responses to their place in life.

A friend of theirs, Abdel Ichaha, has been brutalized by the police shortly before the riot and lies in a coma. Vinz finds a policeman's .44 Magnum revolver, lost in the riot. He vows that if their friend dies from his injuries, he will use it to kill a cop, and when he hears of Abdel's death he fantasizes carrying out his vengeance.

The three go through an aimless daily routine and struggle to entertain themselves, frequently finding themselves under police scrutiny. They take a train to Paris but encounter many of the same frustrations, and their responses to benign interactions with Parisians cause the situations to degenerate to gratuitous hostility. A run-in with sadistic Parisian plainclothes police, during which Saïd and Hubert are humiliated and physically abused, results in their missing the last train home and spending the night on the streets. They go to a roof-top from where they insult skinheads and policemen, before later encountering the same group of racist anti-immigrant skinheads who begin to beat Saïd and Hubert savagely, now that the balance of power has shifted. Vinz arrives and his gun allows him to break up the fight and all the skinheads flee except one (portrayed by Kassovitz himself) who Vinz is about to execute in cold blood. His dream of revenge is thwarted by his reluctance to go through with the deed, and, cleverly goaded by Hubert, he is forced to confront the fact that his true nature is not the heartless gangster he poses as, and he lets the skinhead flee.

Early in the morning, the trio return to the banlieue and split up to their separate homes, and Vinz, in a wise decision, turns the gun over to Hubert, relinquishing his destructive self-image and potentially opening the door to personal growth and a constructive future. However, Vinz and Saïd encounter a plainclothes policeman, whom Vinz had insulted earlier in the day whilst with his friends on a local rooftop. The policeman grabs and threatens Vinz, making reference to the earlier incident on the roof. Hubert rushes to their aid, but as the policeman holding Vinz taunts him with a loaded gun held to Vinz's head, the gun accidentally goes off, killing Vinz instantly. Hubert and the policeman slowly and deliberately point their guns at each other, and as the film cuts to Saïd closing his eyes and cuts to black, a shot is heard on the soundtrack, with no indication of who fired or who may have been hit. However, it can be noted that throughout the film, the gun in Vinz's possession is gradually unloaded through various non fatal firings and/or games of russian roulette (their "friend" Asterix had removed the bullets in the gun as a trick during the game and never replaced them), therefore making the gun unloaded when Vinz threatened to kill the skin head and when Hubert aimed it at the police officer (leading to speculation that Hubert was also killed at the end because his gun had no bullets and was a mere visual/psychological danger). This stand-off is underlined by a voice-over of Hubert's slightly modified opening lines ("It's about a society in free fall..."), underlining the fact that, as the lines say, jusqu'ici tout va bien (so far so good); i.e. all seems to be going relatively well until Vinz is killed, and from there no one knows what will happen, a microcosm of French society's descent through hostility into pointless violence.

Cast

Production

Kassovitz has said that the idea came to him when a young Zairian, Makome M'Bowole (sometimes also named as Makomé Bowole), was shot in 1993. He was killed at point blank range while in police custody and handcuffed to a radiator. The officer was reported to have been angered by Makomé's words, and had been threatening him when the gun went off accidentally.[3] Mathieu Kassovitz included his own experiences; he took part in riots, he acts in a number of scenes and includes his father Peter in another.

The majority of the filming was done in the Parisian suburb of Chanteloup-les-Vignes. Real footage was used for this film, taken from 1986–96; riots still took place during the time of filming. Some of the actors were not professional. Money was an issue in producing the film. Kassovitz used simple special effects, filmed in black and white and used a handheld camera due to not having a big budget.

The film is dedicated to those who died while it was being made ("Ce film est dédié à ceux disparus pendant sa fabrication...")

Reception

La Haine was well received. The film had a total of 2,042,070 admissions in France where it was the 14th highest grossing film of the year.[1] Based on 14 reviews collected by Rotten Tomatoes, the film has an overall approval rating from critics of 100%, with an average score of 8/10.[4] Kevin Thomas of the Los Angeles Times called the film "raw, vital and captivating".[5] Wendy Ide of The Times stated that La Haine is "One of the most blisteringly effective pieces of urban cinema ever made."[6]

It was ranked #32 in Empire magazine's "The 100 Best Films Of World Cinema" in 2010.[7]

Awards

Home media

La Haine was available on VHS in the United States, but was not released on DVD until the Criterion Collection released a 2-disc edition in 2007. The film has been shown on many Charter Communications Channels. Both HD DVD and Blu-ray versions have also been released in Europe.

See also

References

  1. ^ a b http://jpbox-office.com/fichfilm.php?id=3984 Cite error: The named reference "JPBox Office" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
  2. ^ http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0113247/business
  3. ^ Elstob, Kevin. "Hate (La Haine) review". Film Quarterly. 51 (2 (Winter, 1997-1998)). Berkeley, California: University of California Press: 44–49. ISSN 0015-1386. JSTOR 3697140.
  4. ^ "La Haine (Hate) (1995)". Rotten Tomatoes. Flixster. Retrieved July 7, 2011.
  5. ^ Thomas, Kevin (March 8, 1996). "Compelling, Bleak Look at 'Hate'". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on July 7, 2011. Retrieved July 7, 2011. {{cite news}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  6. ^ Ide, Wendy (August 19, 2004). "La Haine". The Times. Archived from the original on July 7, 2011. Retrieved July 7, 2011. {{cite news}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  7. ^ "The 100 Best Films Of World Cinema | 32. La Haine". Empire. 2010. Archived from the original on July 7, 2011. Retrieved July 7, 2011. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  8. ^ "Festival de Cannes: La Haine". festival-cannes.com. Archived from the original on July 7, 2011. Retrieved September 4, 2009. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
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