13 Tzameti (2005)

User Rating:

7.4/10   

Director:

Géla Babluani

Writer:

Géla Babluani (writer)

Release Date:

6 January 2006 (UK)

Genre:

Crime | Drama | Thriller

Plot:

Sebastian, a young man, has decided to follow instructions intended for someone else, without knowing where they will take him...

Plot Keywords:

Syringe | Number 1 | Counting | Passed Out | Light Bulb

Awards:

7 wins & 2 nominations

Cast

George Babluani	...	Sébastien
Pascal Bongard	...	Le maître de cérémonie
Aurélien Recoing	...	Jacky
Fred Ulysse	...	Alain
Nicolas Pignon	...	Le parrain
Vania Vilers	...	Mr. Schlondorff
Olga Legrand	...	Mme Godon
Christophe Vandevelde	...	Ludo
Augustin Legrand	...	José
Jo Prestia	...	Pierre Bléreau
Serge Chambon	...	L'Organisateur
Philippe Passon	...	Jean-François Godon
François Rimbau	...	Un flic
Frédéric Epaud	...	Un parieur (as Fred Epaud)
François Tissot	...	le gendarme Guillouet

Runtime:

93 min | Argentina:95 min (Mar del Plata Film Festival)

Country:

France

Language:

French | Georgian | German

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

UK:15 | France:-16 | Argentina:16 | Switzerland:16 (canton of Geneva) | Switzerland:16 (canton of Vaud) | Netherlands:16 | Singapore:NC-16 | Japan:R-15 | South Korea:18 | Sweden:15 | Australia:MA (2008) | New Zealand:R18

Company:

Les Films de la Strada

Goofs:

Boom mic visible: When Sebastien returns to the home to see about the work and about getting paid, and Mrs. Godon informs him that the house is the responsibility of Jean Francois's sister, the shadow of a boom can be seen on the wall.

Movie Connections:

Remade as 13 (2010)

A thrilling absurd tale of extreme human behavior

There is little one can say about the story without giving away its core absurdity. The first half is a mystery. In the second we are thrown into a violent hell. (For the sensitive: the gore is minimal and mostly off camera.) The film reintroduces us to the fact that the repetitiveness of violence deadens our revulsion to it. Here it applies to the main character in the film and to us as audience. It is disturbing how quickly we get used to each eruption of violence and come to see it as a game. This habituation is what soldiers in war, butchers, and grandma slicing the chicken's neck to get it ready for dinner go through. Death as means to an end. Ultimately an allegory of the predatory nature of power and money.

Filmed in B/W. Blood is dark gray which helps tame our revulsion. The director's brother plays the main role. He does a competent job. Filmed in wide format. Superb editing maintains the tension from beginning to end. As I understand it, "Tzameti" means thirteen. See the film to understand why the film is so named.