A Gang Story (2011)

After growing up in a poor gypsy camp, Edmond Vidal, aka Momon, has retained a sense of family, unfailing loyalty and pride in his origins. Most of all, he has remained friends with Serge ... See full summary »

Director:

Olivier Marchal

Writers:

Olivier Marchal (scenario), Edgar Marie (scenario)

Stars:

Gérard Lanvin, Tchéky Karyo, Daniel Duval

1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Gérard Lanvin	...	Momon Vidal
Tchéky Karyo	...	Serge Suttel
Daniel Duval	...	Christo
Lionnel Astier	...	Dany Devedjian
Dimitri Storoge	...	Momon Vidal jeune
Patrick Catalifo	...	Commissaire Max Brauner
François Levantal	...	Joan Chavez
Francis Renaud	...	Brandon
Valéria Cavalli	...	Janou Vidal
Estelle Skornik	...	Lilou Suttel
Olivier Chantreau	...	Suttel jeune
Stéphane Caillard	...	Janou jeune
Florent Bigot de Nesles	...	Nick le Grec jeune
Nicolas Gerout	...	Christo jeune
Simon Astier	...	Dany Devedjian jeune

Storyline

After growing up in a poor gypsy camp, Edmond Vidal, aka Momon, has retained a sense of family, unfailing loyalty and pride in his origins. Most of all, he has remained friends with Serge Suttel, with whom he first discovered prison life - for stealing cherries. The two of them inevitably got involved in organized crime. The team they formed, the Gang Des Lyonnais, made them the most notorious armed robbers of the early 1970s. Their irresistible rise ended in 1974 with a spectacular arrest. Today, as he nears 60, Momon would like to forget that part of his life. He has found peace by retiring from the "business". He tends to his wife Janou, who suffered so in the past, and to his children and grandchildren, all of whom have great respect for this man of simple and universal values, so clear-headed and full of kindness. But then Serge Suttel, who has disowned nothing of his past, comes back into the picture.

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Plot Keywords:

1970s | prison | gypsy camp | gypsy | gang | 

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Genres:

Drama | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for strong violence, language including sexual references, some nudity and brief drug use

Details

Official Sites:

Gaumont [France] Official site [Japan]

Country:

France Belgium

Language:

French

Release Date:

30 November 2011 (France)

Also Known As:

Gang Story

Filming Locations:

La Boisse, Ain, France

Box Office

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$10,062,427

Company Credits

Production Co:

LGM Productions, Gaumont, France 2 Cinéma

Technical Specs

Runtime:

102 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Based on life events of real life French gangster Edmond Vidal aka Momon.

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Connections

Remade as Yaara

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Soundtracks

ECOUTE-MOI GADJO
Musique de Lick
Paroles GL TILT
interprété par Zézé

User Reviews

Didn't met my expectations

I found this film ordering some DVDs on Amazon. I thought the high votes should warrant for a solid thriller but this time I was wrong. Why? The first twenty to thirty minutes I could have done a meal in the kitchen. The introduction of the characters of these gangsters took too long in my opinion. I have to admit that the atmosphere and the flashbacks into the 60ies or 70ies are well built. I felt really back in this time. Then the young and older actors did a fine job. What I missed is a fast paced story. Perhaps this was not so easy to create because it is finally a true event. The music was very original and top. For all these reasons my expectations haven't been met. 6/10.