Samy Naceri

Director Rachid Bouchareb teams with screenwriter Olivier Morelle to offer a revealing look at the brave contributions made by North African soldiers who fought for France during World War II in this emotionally-charged war drama starring Jamel Debbouze, Samy Naceri, Sami Bouajila, and Bernard Blancan. The year was 1943 and France had been bending to the will of Nazi Germany for three long years. In order to break Hitler's powerful grip, the first French Army was recruited in Africa. Comprised of 130,000 North Africans who were willing to put their lives on the line in order to defeat the Nazi death machine, the fearless fighters were contemptuously dubbed indigènes (natives) by many French, despite their remarkable sacrifice. From the noble Abdelkader (Bouajila), who is fighting strictly for the cause; to the money motivated Yassir (Naceri); the impoverished Saïd (Debbouze); and die-hard romantic Messaoud (Roschdy Zem), who longs to finally visit the country he has dreamt about from afar, the selfless efforts of these remarkable men ultimately transcend their superiors' contemptuous disregard for their service by providing invaluable aid during one of the world's darkest hours. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

Gilles de Maistre's political thriller Féroce (Ferocious) is about a man seeking revenge. Arab Alain (Samy Naceri) decides to join a fascistic French political party in order to assassinate the leader, Legle (Jean-Marc Thibault). Alain comes to this decision when his girlfriend's brother is murdered after he had defaced some of the party's paraphernalia. To improve the party's public stance on immigrants, Alain is hired as a security guard. Legle's daughter is attracted to Alain, who is tempted enough by the girl to abandon some of his religious convictions. Ferocious was screened at the Paris Film Festival. ~ Perry Seibert, All Movie Guide

When an indistinct woman named Charlotte (Isabelle Adjani) leaves a train station in hopes of changing her life forever, she's followed by a mysterious stranger with ill intentions. After recovering a bag hidden adeptly within the women's bathroom, Charlotte re-enters the station, this time looking every inch the femme fatale, from her tailored suit to her dark glasses. When she buys a ticket to another destination, however, the man follows her onboard, determined to prevent her from starting anew. Directed by Laetitia Masson, La Repentie also features Sami Frey, Samy Naceri, Dawn Clement, Maria Schneider, and Jacques Bonnafe. ~ Tracie Cooper, All Movie Guide

Noted French filmmaker Claude Leloud directs this romantic comedy about a trio of femme fatale musketeers. In order to repay a stack of debts after a disastrous self-financed production of Chekhov's "Three Sisters," Olga (Anne Parillaud), Macha (Alice Evans), and Irina (Marianne Denicourt) hatch a mercenary scheme aimed at lonely Concorde passengers. Armed with exotic false identities and intelligence gathered by Irina's sister and airline employee Olivia (Olivia Bonamy), the three plot to seduce a lonely millionaire, maintain a chaste relationship long enough to exact expensive gifts, and then find an excuse to breakup. Olga's first mark, Oscar, immediately drops his wife when he learns that Olga is a direct descendant of Johannes Sebastian Bach, his favorite composer. Irina's mark, a fabulously wealthy nightclub owner who obsesses over buying a chateaux, dumps his wife, too, when he learns that she is related to Marie Antoinette. Macha has similar success with the president of an unnamed African nation when she reveals that she is descended from renowned humanitarian Albert Schweitzer. Things get dicey when Bayard, (Jean-Pierre Marielle) a suave, seasoned police commissioner gets involved in their dubious scheme. ~ Jonathan Crow, All Movie Guide

French filmmaker Manuel Boursinhac directs this bleak, gritty film about addiction and redemption. Fledging writer Eric (Vincent Elbaz) and his girlfriend (Laurence Cote) consort with junkie thieves. After getting busted by the cops for drug possession, he chooses to enter rehab over going to prison. Helped by his sympathetic roommate and his writing muse, Eric finds temporary relief from the pain of withdrawal. Un pur moment de rock 'n' roll was screened at the 1999 San Sebastian Film Festival. ~ Jonathan Crow, All Movie Guide

Taxi driver Daniel (Samy Naceri) gets out of a traffic offense by making a deal with arresting-officer Emilien (Frederic Diefenthal). A friendship develops as Daniel chauffeurs Emilien about, and soon the two are in pursuit of German bank robbers. This film was scripted by Luc Besson during the 30 days he waited for Columbia's decision on his The Fifth Element, and it was completed on the day Columbia okayed The Fifth Element. After a fall from a horse put director Gerard Pires in the hospital, director Gerard Krawczyk subbed since permits issued by Marseilles cited a set time period, and the start date could not be changed. More than 100 cars took part in the crashes and chases through the Marseilles streets with stuntwork by famed racecar drivers. ~ Bhob Stewart, All Movie Guide

The troubled lives of youths living in the grim housing projects of Paris provide the basis of this gritty, topical French drama with comedic overtones that tells the tale of two disparate Arabic brothers. Djamel is the good brother and Nordine is the bad one. Both young men still live at home, in a high-rise housing project, with their mother, who still wears traditional garb. Nordine is a drug addict and is first seen holding a horse hostage so he can get the money he needs to pay off his pusher. Djamel is seen working hard and dreaming of marrying Sahlia, a beautiful girl with an overprotective brother, Mezz, with whom Djamel is good friends. These two and their friends try hard to keep away from trouble. Sahlia, on the other hand, is tired of living like a traditionally submissive Arab girl and defies both Djamel and Mezz by sleeping with one of their friends. Meanwhile, Nordine shoots his handgun from the roof of an apartment block and starts a riot. The film's title refers a genre of North African rock music that is popular in the projects. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

As visually stylish as it is graphically violent, this thriller directed by Luc Besson concerns Mathilda (Natalie Portman), a 12-year-old girl living in New York City who has been exposed to the sordid side of life from an early age: her family lives in a slum and her abusive father works for drug dealers, cutting and storing dope. Mathilda doesn't much care for her parents, but she has a close bond with her four-year-old brother. One day, she returns from running an errand to discover that most of her family, including her brother, have been killed in a raid by corrupt DEA agents, led by the psychotic Stansfield (Gary Oldman). Mathilda takes refuge in the apartment of her secretive neighbor, Leon (Jean Reno), who takes her in with a certain reluctance. She discovers that Leon is a professional assassin, working for Tony (Danny Aiello), a mob kingpin based in Little Italy. Wanting to avenge the death of her brother, Mathilda makes a deal with Leon to become his protégée in exchange for work as a domestic servant, hoping to learn the hitman's trade and take out the men who took her brother's life. However, an affection develops between Leon and Mathilda that changes his outlook on his life and career. Besson's first American film boasted a strong performance from Jean Reno, a striking debut by Natalie Portman, and a love-it-or-hate-it, over-the-top turn by Gary Oldman. Léon was originally released in the U.S. in 1994 as The Professional, with 26 minutes cut in response to audience preview tests. Those 26 minutes were restored in the director's preferred cut, released in 1996 in France as Léon: Version Intégrale and in the U.S. on DVD as Léon: The Professional in 2000. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide