The Ax

Original title: Le couperet

20052005
Not RatedNot Rated
1h 57m

José Garcia in Le couperet (2005)

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Comedy Crime Drama

A chemist (Garcia) loses his job to outsourcing. Two years later and still jobless, he hits on a solution: to genuinely eliminate his competition.A chemist (Garcia) loses his job to outsourcing. Two years later and still jobless, he hits on a solution: to genuinely eliminate his competition.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 "The Ax")
- Costa-Gavras(screenplay)
- Jean-Claude Grumberg(screenplay)
Stars

See production, box office & company info

See more at IMDbPro

Awards
- 1 win & 5 nominations

Videos1

Bande-annonce [OV]

Bande-annonce [OV]

Photos11

Le couperet (2005)

José Garcia and Karin Viard in Le couperet (2005)

José Garcia, Geordy Couturiau, Karin Viard, and Christa Théret in Le couperet (2005)

José Garcia in Le couperet (2005)

José Garcia in Le couperet (2005)

José Garcia and Luc Bromagne in Le couperet (2005)

José Garcia and Thierry Hancisse in Le couperet (2005)

José Garcia and Ulrich Tukur in Le couperet (2005)

José Garcia, Karin Viard, and Christa Théret in Le couperet (2005)

José Garcia, Ulrich Tukur, and Karin Viard in Le couperet (2005)

Director
- Costa-Gavras
Writers
- Donald E. Westlake(novel "The Ax")
- Costa-Gavras(screenplay)
- Jean-Claude Grumberg(screenplay)
All cast & crew
See more cast details at IMDbPro

Amen.

7.2

The Confession

7.9

Capital

6.5

State of Siege

7.8

Eden Is West

6.8

Special Section

7.7

Special Section

Missing

7.7

Music Box

7.4

The Little Apocalypse

6.2

The Little Apocalypse

8.2

Family Council

5.2

Adults in the Room

5.9

Adults in the Room

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? —1felco

employment recruiter immoral ending competition outsourcing contestant elimination 54 more

Taglines
- Some people would die to get (him) this job. [Scandinavian DVD.]
Genres
Certificate
- Not Rated
Parents guide

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

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.

Quotes
Gérard Hutchinson: [When the interviewer abruptly ends the interview] I said to myself, lucky I didn't have the gun on me.

Connections
Referenced in Elite Squad 2: The Enemy Within (2010)

Top review

8/10

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.

helpful•47

7

Angeneer
Feb 26, 2006

Gross worldwide
- $4,885,946

See detailed box office info on IMDbPro

Runtime
1 hour 57 minutes
Color
- Color
Sound mix
- DTS
- Dolby Digital
Aspect ratio
- 1.85 : 1

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José Garcia in Le couperet (2005)

Top Gap

By what name was Le couperet (2005) officially released in India in English?

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