2015 was written in 1996.
The story of that guy falling off a 50-storey building telling himself “everything’s fine, for now” every few seconds has now found its way to international fame, and it’s more relevant today than it has ever been.
Youth. That’s the true driving force in Mathieu Kassovitz’s La Haine, both in terms of production and popularity. Rarely has a non-Hollywood movie made it this big, and that much loved by young people. Who says youngsters go for movies that don’t require any thinking?
It’s not a blockbuster, most of the actors aren’t considered to be very famous or drop-dead bombshells, and it can even be a challenge for non-francophone viewers to follow both the script and the dynamic picture. And yet, with an 8.1/10 grade on IMDB and a 100% rating on Rotten Tomatoes, it’s been incredibly well received by people between 15 and 25 over the last few years. Today, with the recent events drawing the world’s attention to Ferguson, MO and North Charleston, SC, such a movie cannot be ignored, certainly not solely for it’s incredible directing, producing and editing, but also, and mainly, for the message it sends its viewers and the way it transmits it.
The movie starts off with the footage of riots in the outskirts of Paris. Young men screaming, throwing rocks, policemen ready to shoot, beating up demonstrators, cursing, cursing and cursing. Accompanying this violent scene is a Bob Marley song. At first, the reggae vibe seems to create a sort of Good Morning, Vietnam -esque contrast, when paired with the visuals. However, viewers are quickly brought back to reality when the chorus comes along: “Burnin’ and lootin’ tonight”. It is indeed one of Marley’s most pro-revolution (the standard, violent way, that is) pieces that kicks off La Haine. It does fit well with the atmosphere of the opening scene, however, such violent messages aren’t what made Marley the militant he’s now recognized as. Admiration, on the other hand, is often the way in which the legend is looked at today.
The use of a preacher-like figure in such a strong opening scene has you wondering, convincing yourself that something must be wrong for people to act like this, without even understanding the reason behind all this anger, driving you to the most acute point of hatred, rebellion and violence within, in order to destroy all of these as the pictures pass by your eyes, with a poignant coup de grâce preceding the ending credits.
This precise destruction process is shown through La Haine‘s subtleties. So don’t blink.
The genius of this movie lies in a peculiar creative format involving picture and sound, generating the perfect mix. This multi-sensory voyage is firstly composed of the black and white picture. Quite retrograde for a 1996 movie, isn’t it? This editorial choice enhances the duality between good and bad, life and death, love and hate, loyalty and treason, and other age-old concepts. In fact, the whole movie seems to be like this roller coaster taking you up and down, so near to heaven, through hell, back and on and on.
As mentioned earlier, this movie is all about youth. How it is, how it’s not supposed to be, and what it aspires to be, breaking all the barriers of media realism all while keeping a certain proximity to everyday struggles.
As a wave of riots crashes upon many nations today, as police brutality scandals surface one after the other, this movie gives a whole generation an unreachable hubris, rage, and calmness at the same time, encouraging to turn the other cheek, and have justice served in a rightful way, without, however, being passive.
La Haine embodies as well the concepts of rupture and continuity which are, in many cases, conditional to each other, reaching out and grabbing the youth by the very definition of its cultural variety: innovation in tradition. From gangsters to hipsters, they all revive the past, while adding to it, in their own way. One of the central pieces, and probably the most famous track to be heard in this movie, is Cut Killer’s “Assassin de la police”, sampling the mythical Edith Piaf, showing the contrast between old and new, noble and gangster, all while somehow linking both, and resulting in a wonderful tune. This track is the bridge between contraries, hinting at beauty in a graceful rebellion, otherwise known as peaceful justice, and agreement between authorities and minorities, as well as all different generations.
This masterpiece builds up anger, rage, and hatred, clenches fists and reddens cheeks, and destroys it all with a “good guy gone bad” or, as some others may view it “a best friend just being a best friend” retribution in the closing sequence. In any case, this beautiful terror will make you reflect on the current matters, police brutality, generation gap and gang violence, and you’ll wish La Haine were never-ending.