Les Miserables
U/A: Crime, Drama
Cast: Damien Bonnard, Alexis Manenti, Djibril Zonga, Steve Tientcheu, Jeanne Balibar, Issa Perica, Al-Hassan Ly, Almamy Kanoute
Director: Ladj Ly
Rating: 

Documentary filmmaker Ladj Ly's debut fiction film "Les Misérables" (with a title that harkens back to the inequities that spurred the creation of Victor Hugo's classic)may have gotten its creative surge from the riots that broke out and raged for over three weeks in the suburbs of Paris and other cities in France in 2005, but it stands universally as a deep, contemporary understanding of the nature of a 'riot' - incited by an seemingly innocuous incident that triggers a community's rage - one that has been suppressed over time by heaps of injustices and disappointments.

The events in this film take place in 2018 but the haunting reminisces of that horrific three weeks are not far away from the film maker's mind. One of the characters in the film even references that traumatic time. The context may be the Paris riots but the theme applies to India as well. This film in fact comes at an opportune time (for India viewers) as it releases just after the horrific, unforgivable incidents that lead to the recent Delhi riots and may give people a perspective on how they unwittingly become party to a deplorable, inhumane event. In both countries, be it France or India, the situation has become even more polarized and damaged and anarchical political intent, criminal bungling and judicial impotence are only fueling further unparalleled unrest.