Based on a true story about organized crime in Marseille in the 1970s, ‘The Connection’ (released as ‘La French’ in France) is a slick, impressive gangster film that in the end sadly comes up short of Gangster movie greatness. The movie stars the very charismatic Jean Dujardin (‘The Artist’, ‘The Wolf of Wall Street’) as the famous magistrate ‘Judge’ Pierre Michel who **spoiler alert** was tragically killed as a result of his successful efforts to take down the French Connection, a drug smuggling operation run by ‘Tany’ Zampa played by Gilles Lellouche. My only knowledge of the French Connection comes from the William Friedkin film from 1971 so it was an interesting experience getting to learn more about this particular crime syndicate from a European perspective. Whereas Friedkin’s film was gritty and naturalistic in its approach, director Cédric Jimenez embraces a stylized, glamorous approach that makes one want to plan a vacation to France immediately. Much like Michael Mann’s film ‘Heat’ which follows the elaborate game of cat and mouse between Robert De Niro and Al Pacino, this film focuses primarily on the battle of wills between the characters played by Jean Dujardin and Gilles Lellouche. The movie is at its best when these two share screen time. While there is much to love about the movie, the sudden intensity of the action scenes in particular, my grievances with ‘The Connection’ stem from the screenplay which too often gets sidetracked with tedious uninteresting distractions from the central storyline. At 135 minutes, the film’s length feels excessive. After seeing the trailer (see below) cut by Drafthouse Films who acquired the film, I was convinced that I was about to see a new classic in the tradition of the best films of Jean-Pierre Melville. Perhaps I should not have allowed myself to be taken in by the trailer so easily, but after watching the trailer several times, I’m convinced that whoever cuts trailers for Drafthouse should have been allowed at least one pass at the movie. The results might have been cinematic gold but alas we’ll never know.
Criticizing a movie for falling short of Gangster movie greatness is probably unfair, but with a genre that is so rich in classics, the comparisons are inevitable. From the early 1930s classics such as ‘Little Caesar’ & ‘The Public Enemy’ to later masterpieces such as ‘The Godfather’ and ‘Goodfellas’, the first thing fans of the genre discuss when they see a new gangster flick is to what degree it steals and/or borrows from the essential classics. To its credit, ‘The Connection’ stylistically feels quite different from any American gangster films and visually has in more common with a film like Sorrentino’s ‘La Grande Belleza’ than with movies or television shows set around New York. The widescreen cinematography in ‘The Connection’ is a sumptuous feast for the eyes and the score is a delight, in particular the French cover of ‘Bang Bang (My Baby Shot Me Down) sung by Sheila. Nobody is going to criticize this movie for a lack of style or polish. As I mentioned earlier, my chief complaint with the film is with the screenplay which unfolds at a leisurely pace with an abundance of redundant scenes that had me shifting in my seat for much of the movie. That said, Jean Dujardin’s gives his performance his all in this movie and proves that he easily has the acting chops and the magnetism to be a strong leading man. I have yet to see a performance by him that I didn’t thoroughly enjoy. Overall, anyone that enjoys a good, solid gangster movie or police procedural will find plenty to enjoy in ‘The Connection’. If my tone is a little bittersweet it is only because I was so completely enthralled by the trailer that anything short of Jean-Pierre Melville’s ‘Bob le Flambeur’ or ‘Le Samouraï’ was bound to leave me disappointed. In spite of my criticisms, director Cédric Jimenez has caught my attention and I’ll be keen to see whatever films he has in store for us in the future.
Director Cédric Jimenez and Jean Dujardin at work on ‘The Connection’ aka ‘La French’.
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Great scene between the two leading men, Jean Dujardin & Gilles Lellouche.
Jean Dujardin, director Cédric Jimenez and Gilles Lellouche.
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