Rebellion (2011)
"L'ordre et la morale" (original title)

Dissidents in a French colony attack a police station and take hostages.

Director:

Mathieu Kassovitz

Writers:

Mathieu Kassovitz, Benoît Jaubert,

Stars:

Mathieu Kassovitz, Iabe Lapacas, Malik Zidi

1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Mathieu Kassovitz	...	Capitaine du GIGN Philippe Legorjus
Iabe Lapacas	...	Alphonse Dianou
Malik Zidi	...	JP Perrot
Alexandre Steiger	...	Jean Bianconi
Daniel Martin	...	Bernard Pons
Philippe Torreton	...	Christian Prouteau
Sylvie Testud	...	Chantal Legorjus
Steeve Une	...	Samy
Philippe de Jacquelin Dulphé	...	Général de brigade Vidal
Patrick Fierry	...	Colonel de l'armée Dubut
Jean-Philippe Puymartin	...	Général de Gendarmerie Jérôme
Stefan Godin	...	Lieutenant Colonel de Gendarmerie Benson (as Stéfan Godin)
François 'Kötrepi' Neudjen	...	Nine Wea
Macki Wea	...	Djubelly Wea
Alphonse Djoupa	...	Hilaire Dianou

Storyline

April 1988, Ouvea island, New Caledonia. 30 policemen held hostage by a group of Kanak separatists. 300 soldiers sent from France to restore order. 2 men face to face: Philippe Legorjus, captain of the GIGN and Alphonse Dianou, head of the hostage takers. Through shared values, they will try to win the dialogue. But in the midst of a presidential election, when the stakes are political, order is not always dictated by morality.

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Plot Keywords:

hostage | french colony | kanak | melanesia | french colonial | 

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Genres:

Action | Drama | History

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Details

Official Sites:

Official site [fr] Official site [jp]

Country:

France

Language:

French

Release Date:

16 November 2011 (France)

Also Known As:

Rebellion

Filming Locations:

New Caledonia

Company Credits

Production Co:

MNP Entreprise, Cofinova 7, Nord-Ouest Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

136 min

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Connections

Featured in Le dernier assaut (2012)

User Reviews

great, yet virtually unknown

I stumbled upon this one while browsing through Matthieu Kassovitz's filmography only because i've been acquainted with his previous work. However, it seems that Hollywood remains merciless and after one not-bad movie like Gothika (2003) and one sub-par like Babylon A.D. (2008) Mathieu had to turn back to France for funding.

Rebellion (L'ordre et la morale) is as dramatic but not as much action driven as, for example, Black Hawk Down (2001) or Saving Private Ryan (2008), yet we know almost everything about the latter movies and virtually nothing about Rebellion. And at times it paints the big picture as monumental as Apocalypse Now (1979). So, i tried to understand why is this movie kept below radar level.

Probably the main reasons are that it's in French and portraying events on an almost forgotten island in Pacific Ocean. But as the story develops we encounter all axioms of colonialism (ore deposit, indigenous people striving for independence, disinterested politicians, trigger-happy military) creating a powder keg bound to explode.

Trapped in the middle is a negotiator played by Mathieu Kassovitz himself. He is usually good at what he's doing, but politicians would like to see a quick solution in the light of impending elections. Military is excited to see some action and there is little need for a negotiator that would like to resolve the deadlock by talking to the rebels.

This is enough to give you a flavor of what you see in Rebellion, but also leaves you with a question why we don't know about it. Obviously, there are other things that make a movie popular apart from good script, captivating photography and exquisite performance by the actors. Yet i always feel bad when a stupefying blockbuster gets more media attention than a masterpiece like Rebellion.