As this film opens our protagonist, Fred, is driving along barely noticing that he is being chased by another car even when it starts ramming him. Once he realises he heads into the Paris Metro where he abandons the car. Here he retreats into the maze of tunnels and meets a variety of characters who appear to live there; Roller, a roller-skating snatch-thief; Big Bill, a bodybuilder, a florist and even a band. We soon learn that Fred is a thief and he has stolen documents from a very dangerous man. He tries to blackmail the man's wife, Héléna, into paying for the documents but ends up developing feelings for her. While this is going of the authorities are looking for Roller and the gangster's men are still searching for Fred.
The way this early film from director Luc Besson opens is clearly a hint of things to come; the car chase might not be as intense as those in the 'Transporter' and 'Taxi' films but shows a similar style and is a lot of fun. Once Fred is in the tunnels of the Paris Metro the characters he meets are as interesting as they are varied. The plot isn't exactly complex and there are few real surprises but that didn't bother me as it mainly served to introduce us to the characters and provide a series of entertaining and somewhat surreal moments. The mostly subterranean setting adds a lot to the great feel of the film. The cast did a fine job, most notably Christopher Lambert, who is on good form as Fred, but also Isabelle Adjani, as Héléna; Jean-Hugues Anglade as the Roller; Richard Bohringer as the florist and Jean Reno as the drummer amongst others. As the film reaches its end we are treated to an impressively bitter-sweet conclusion. Overall I'd certainly recommend this to fans of Luc Besson; it is good stylish fun.
These comments are based on watching the film in French with English subtitles.
The way this early film from director Luc Besson opens is clearly a hint of things to come; the car chase might not be as intense as those in the 'Transporter' and 'Taxi' films but shows a similar style and is a lot of fun. Once Fred is in the tunnels of the Paris Metro the characters he meets are as interesting as they are varied. The plot isn't exactly complex and there are few real surprises but that didn't bother me as it mainly served to introduce us to the characters and provide a series of entertaining and somewhat surreal moments. The mostly subterranean setting adds a lot to the great feel of the film. The cast did a fine job, most notably Christopher Lambert, who is on good form as Fred, but also Isabelle Adjani, as Héléna; Jean-Hugues Anglade as the Roller; Richard Bohringer as the florist and Jean Reno as the drummer amongst others. As the film reaches its end we are treated to an impressively bitter-sweet conclusion. Overall I'd certainly recommend this to fans of Luc Besson; it is good stylish fun.
These comments are based on watching the film in French with English subtitles.