'A Prophet', set in a French prison, tells the story of an eighteen year old, Malik El Dejebena, a North African emigrant who is just beginning a six year prison sentence. His vulnerability inside the prison walls soon attracts the attention of Cesár, a Corscian mobster with the guards in his pocket - masterfully played by Niels Arestrup. Placing Malik in a no win situation, Cesár orders him to murder a fellow inmate, who is due to give evidence against members of Cesárs gang, or be killed himself. On completing the order, Malik is tentatively welcomed ino the Corscian gang and the protection it entails. But Malik has big plans and as he slowly rises through the ranks of the Corscian mob, everthing falls into place for the films explosively excellent ending.
From French director Jacques Audiard ('A Self-Made Hero' and 'The Beat That My Heart Skipped') 'A Prophet' is a rentlessly brutal but gripping prison drama with superb performances all round. The central performance by newcomer Tahar Rahim, whoes intense protrayal of Malik from brooding, frightened new inmate to self-assured, dangerous gangster is in particular, quite outstanding. The film, which is nominated for a Best Foreign Picture Oscar, may not be to everyone's taste, but fans of such films as Goodfellas, Scarface and The Godfather Triology, should not be disappointed.
