Mathieu Simonet Movies
When an archeology student unearths some ancient Celtic stones in a mysterious forest, she comes face to face with the malevolent supernatural presence behind a spate of recent deaths at her nearby university. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Elsa Kikoine, Cylia Malki, (more)
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
- Starring:
- Jamel Debbouze, Samy Naceri, (more)
- 2002
La Bande de Drugstore is the debut feature from writer/director Francois Armanet, who adapted the script from his own novel. Set in Paris during the 1960s, a group of stylish teenagers hang out at a club called the Drugstore. Shy Philippe Challes (Mathieu Simonet) wants to meet a girl but he doesn't know how to go about it. Experienced Nathalie (Alice Taglioni) invites him and his friend Marc (Aurelien Wiik) to the birthday party of the also quite shy Charlotte (Cecile Cassel). Philippe and Charlotte develop a strong interest in each other, but neither one seems to know what to do about it. Philippe also tries to pick up girls with his friend Pierre (Laurent Pialet), while Nathalie finds herself attracted to Charlotte's father (Thierry Lhermitte). The '60s pop rock soundtrack features Aretha Franklin, Sonny & Cher, and Otis Redding. ~ Andrea LeVasseur, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Mathieu Simonet, Cecile Cassel, (more)
Claude Chabrol directed this well-crafted thriller, which recalls the style and themes of his best-known work of the 1960s. Marie-Claire "Mika" Muller (Isabelle Huppert), who has inherited control of a large and successful Swiss chocolate company, remarries well-known musician André Polonski (Jacques Dutronc), to whom she was briefly wed 18 years ago. After their divorce, André married a woman named Lisabeth and they had a son, Guillaume (Rodolphe Pauly), whom André was left to raise alone after Lisabeth's death in an auto accident. One of André's favorite stories is how Guillaume was almost exchanged for another baby at the hospital shortly after he was born; one day André receives a visit from a young woman named Jeanne (Anna Mouglalis), who claims to be the other child. Jeanne and André soon find they have a remarkable amount in common, and that Jeanne bears a striking resemblance to the late Lisabeth. Jeanne is beginning to wonder if there's something no one has ever told her when Mika gives her a thermos of special hot chocolate as a nightcap, which she then spills all over Jeanne. Jeanne's boyfriend, Axel (Mathieu Simonet), facetiously suggests that the cocoa might be poisoned, and out of curiosity, he tests it, finding that it has indeed been laced with a sedative notorious for its use in cases of date rape. Merci Pour le Chocolat is based on a novel by American crime novelist Charlotte Armstrong. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Isabelle Huppert, Jacques Dutronc, (more)
After pulling off the heist of their lives, Danny Ocean and his pals unexpectedly find themselves back in harness in this sequel to 2001's blockbuster hit Ocean's Eleven. After robbing a cool $160 million from the Bellaggio Hotel Casino and winning back his former wife, Tess (Julia Roberts), from Bellagio owner Terry Benedict (Andy Garcia), Danny Ocean (George Clooney) is living quietly on the lam in Connecticut when he's unexpectedly approached by Benedict. It seems Benedict has tracked down Danny and the ten men who helped him pull off the seemingly impossible robbery, and Benedict offers them a proposal -- if they can repay the $160 million in two weeks, he won't have them killed. As it turns out, both Danny and his best friend, Rusty Ryan (Brad Pitt), haven't been doing so well in terms of money management and could use some cash, so they set out to plan a robbery to recover the loot, with the same crew helping out -- Linus Caldwell (Matt Damon), Frank Catton (Bernie Mac), Basher Tarr (Don Cheadle), Saul Bloom (Carl Reiner), Reuben Tishkoff (Elliott Gould), Livingston Dell (Eddie Jemison), Yen (Shaobo Qin), Virgil Malloy (Casey Affleck), and his brother Turk (Scott Caan). Danny and Rusty discover that an incredibly rare Fabergé egg is being displayed at a museum in Rome which would fetch the price they need, but they soon discover a notorious cat burglar, François Toulour (Vincent Cassel), is also after the egg, and it turns into a race to see who can claim it first. Adding to the intrigue is Isabel Lahiri (Catherine Zeta-Jones), a woman Rusty used to be involved with who is now a top agent with Interpol and is after both Toulour and Ocean's crew. Shot on location in both the United States and Europe, Ocean's Twelve was, like its precursor, directed by the stylish Steven Soderbergh, who also photographed the picture under his nom de lens, Peter Andrews. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- George Clooney, Brad Pitt, (more)
- 2005
The staid lives of a mother and daughter eking out a living in a coastal French resort town seem to take a turn for the better when a new man enters their life in this drama from sophomore filmmaker Anne Villacèque. Years of toiling away at a lavish resort have weathered chambermaid Antionette (Miou-Miou), and her daughter, Stella (Vahina Giocante), supplements her mother's income by working as an exotic dancer at a local nightclub. As Antionette bides her time at the resort by fantasizing about the handsome young guests, Stella begins to see promise in the future in the eyes of visiting real estate agent Jean-Michel (Elie Semoun). Though Jean-Michel initially sweeps young Stella off her aching feet with promises of a better tomorrow, her wiser mother soon comes to the realization that sometimes people are not what they initially appear to be. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Miou-Miou, Elie Semoun, (more)
