The Ax (2005)

A chemist (Garcia) loses his job to outsourcing. Two years later and still jobless, he hits on a solution: to genuinely eliminate his competition.

Director:

Costa-Gavras

Writers:

Donald E. Westlake (novel), Costa-Gavras (screenplay)

Stars:

José Garcia, Karin Viard, Geordy Monfils

1 win & 5 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
José Garcia	...	Bruno Davert
Karin Viard	...	Marlène Davert
Geordy Monfils	...	Maxime Davert
Christa Théret	...	Betty Davert
Ulrich Tukur	...	Gérard Hutchinson
Olivier Gourmet	...	Raymond Machefer
Yvon Back	...	Etienne Barnet
Thierry Hancisse	...	Inspecteur Kesler
Olga Grumberg	...	Iris Thompson
Yolande Moreau	...	Préposée poste
Dieudonné Kabongo	...	Quinlan Longus (as Dieudonné Kabongo Bashila)
Jean-Pierre Gos	...	Garagiste
Vanessa Larré	...	Prédatrice
Serge Larivière	...	Inspecteur Police
Jeanne Savary	...	La présentatrice TV

Storyline

Bruno Davert, a chemist working for a paper company, is fired. After three years he's still unemployed, too much competition for the few job position he could fit in his sector. He sent tons of resumes, he attended many qualifying courses, he tried everything but there is nothing to do: no job for him in the industry. The only healthy company in the sector is "Arcadia", but joining it is just an impossible dream. At this point Bruno is desperate. What he could do: to kill all the competitors? Could he?

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Plot Keywords:

competition | outsourcing | contestant elimination | unemployment | son in jail | 

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Taglines:

Some people would die to get (him) this job. [Scandinavian DVD.]

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Genres:

Comedy | Crime | Drama | Thriller

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Details

Country:

Belgium France Spain

Language:

French Dutch

Release Date:

2 March 2005 (France)

Also Known As:

The Ax

Filming Locations:

Boulevard Piercot, Liège, Liège Province, Belgium

Box Office

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$4,885,946

Company Credits

Production Co:

K.G. Productions, StudioCanal, France 2 Cinéma

Technical Specs

Runtime:

117 min

Sound Mix:

DTS Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Ads on billboards in the background were created by famous Italian photographer Oliviero Toscani, a friend of the director.

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Goofs

At the beginning, when Davert (Garcia) gets out of the shower and then immediately returns to the bathroom to vomit, you can see in the mirror that he is wearing an underwear.

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Quotes

Gérard Hutchinson: Vous savez, au bout de cinq ans de chômage on est devenu... non, comment on dit en français?
Bruno Davert: Has-been.
Gérard Hutchinson: Ah oui, voilà, has-been.

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Connections

Version of A Shock to the System (1990)

User Reviews

A frightening reality

People who characterize this film as a comedy obviously haven't got it. The comic element is just a thin surface. This is a tragic story and a very strong political statement. Obviously Bruno's decisions and actions are absurd, but his circumstances are not. The movie offers an incisive look at the dark reality of chronic unemployment. Corporate greed leads to story after story after story of desperation. Westlake and Gavras know that in order to pass the message you have to lighten up the atmosphere (a la Truman Show), or else the viewer won't sit the whole movie. In order to appreciate the film you have to marginalize the main plot element (the murder story) and concentrate on all the subplots.