19-year-old Malik (Tahar Malik) has to go to jail for six years although we never find out really why. Will he be able to cope with the deprivation that waits to him in the harsh prison environment where it all comes down to the survival of the fittest? The fact that he has an Arabic background doesn’t make things any easier. He is loyal to his Muslim fellow prisoners, but is just as eager to make friends with the Corsican mafia. When César (beautifully played by Niels Arestrup), the leader of the merciless Mafia gang, asks Malik for a favour – ‘an offer he can’t refuse’ – that marks the beginning of a nerve wracking power-play between Malik, the Muslim and the Mafia. Who will win? Un prophète won the Grand Prix at the Cannes Festival, while the protagonist Tahar Rahim was given the European Film Award as Best Actor at the end of last year for his impressive role.
Film details
- Country of production
- France
- Year
- 2009
- Festival edition
- IFFR 2010
- Length
- 149'
- Medium/Format
- 35mm
