Freedom FightersCinémoi reviews a new political-period thriller starring A Prophet’s Tahar Rahim

Words by

Jack Jones

Free Men is in cinemas 25 Mayvia Artificial Eye

Caught between the extremism of the Nazi occupationand the fight for equal rights for Algerian immigrantsin France, Tahar Rahim’s role as Younes, an initially reluctant freedom fighter, is as nuanced and well constructed as the film itself. A period thriller set during World War II, director Ismael Ferroukhi raises both historical and contemporary political issues without itever feeling preachy or at the detriment of the drama.Free Men isn’t just a depiction of the fight against the Nazi’s, it’s also about the struggle for equality in the face of fascism overall.

Free Men could be seen to have a political agendain favour of recognising the crimes against French Algerians, but there is also an underlying subtext of discrimination made by those in power to people ofvarious creeds, religions, races and sexualities.

Based somewhat on the true events of a smallgroup of French resistance fighters in Paris, the storyprimarily follows Younes who, after being pressuredby the French police to spy on a mosque when he iscaught selling on the black market, becomesincreasingly embittered with the regime and active inthe pursuit of liberation. Under the impression thisbravery could also lead to Algerian independence inthe future, Younes and his gang play a dangerous cat and mouse game with the Gestapo as they begintheir round up.

The mosque Younes initially was spying on isrevealed to be aiding Jewish residents to escape Nazi persecution by habouring them and providing false documentation. One member in particular they are helping is Salim,a popular musician and singer. Salim is in factJewish and hides behind the impression thathe is Muslim. An unexpected friendshipblossoms between Younes and Salim but isone that, by the end, is tested and brokenbecause of political and social division. In theend, Younes must decide whether to save his own best interests or the lives of others.

Tahar Rahim impresses greatly with a rolethat is very much straight off the set ofJacques Audiard’s masterful crime/prison odyssey A Prophet. Younes in many ways followsa similar path to that of inexperienced inmateMalik. Awkward and unsure at first, bothcharacters are observant and quickly becomeassured of their surroundings and its hierarchies. Just as Rahim had done in A Prophet, thereis a brilliant and utterly believable transition thathe portrays in his characters. And as if in the flickof a switch, he can give a look of pure innocenceand then suddenly one of confident ruthlessness.

The overrall style of Free Men has a simple,pragmatic and almost old fashioned sensibility.There is little to speak of in terms of actionor flashy set pieces. Rather, the film has a quiet, impending terror that lurks in the background. As a film that references the Nazipersecution of Jews, Free Men is not as visuallyexplicit as say Roman Polanski’s The Pianistor even the more recent Sarah’s Key. Ferroukhi’stale is more about near misses and escapesand the day to day routine of avoiding capture. Brilliantly composed is a feeling of claustrophobia and dread that at any moment something could suddenly go wrong.

An interesting companion piece to Free Men isRachid Bouchareb’s Outside The Law. A farmore politically overt film than Ferroukhi’s attimes subtle approach, Outside The Lawapproaches the disenfranchisement of French-Algerians with far more scope and focus.More of a historical prologue than that of thepost-War fight for independence, Free Men leaves the film ending on a precarious andambiguous note. The long standing animositybetween Arab and Jew is a prevalentcontemporary topic that still rages, but with

an approach that makes you question what is behind some of those understated glances and exchanges, this film lingers long in the memory.

Free Men’s success is precisely found in thewhole tone of understatement, typified most by Michael Lonsdale‘s scene stealing performance.Tahar Rahim is undeniably great and is the glue that sticks the film together, but Lonsdale’splacid coolness is irrresistable. As the rector of the mosque, Lonsdale has a continual and daily sparring session with a suspicious Germanofficer. But The rector keeps him close as to allayany suspicions however. Keep your friends close but your enemies closer. Lonsdale also adds a cheeky comic element to the wizenedold man routine that only serves to frustrate theNazi’s even further. Outwitted and outcharmed,the humourless Nazi’s almost implode in his verypresence.

One of the most well-pieced together and effortless films to watch in some time, don’t thinkthat Free Men isn’t dramatically gripping orpolitically engaging as a consequence. This isa film with plenty to say but isn’t boggeddown in its own message

“as if in the flick of

a switch, he (Tahar

Rahim) can give a

look of pure

innocence and

then suddenly one

of confident

ruthlessness”