zardoz-13 Writer & director Laurent Tuel's "Le premier cercle" qualifies as a gritty, hard-boiled heist thriller about a pugnacious clan of Armenian mobsters in France. Jean Reno stars as the ruthless father and crime boss Milo Malakian. He remains unscathed throughout this well-staged dramatic shoot'em up. Nevertheless, his life of crime exacts a tragic toll on his family. Gaspard Ulliel plays Milo's handsome son Anton Malakian who isn't sure that a criminal career is best for him. He wants to invest in a small motel and raise horses. Anton falls in love with the pretty young nurse, Elodie (Vahina Giocante) who takes care of his grandmother. Interestingly enough, Reno's tough guy protagonist never sees the inside of a jail cell. When Reno and his larcenous family aren't trying to kill French police inspector L'inspecteur Saunier, they are feuding with each other over the girl that the son wants to wed. Moreover, the son follows reluctantly in the father's footsteps. The stolen car scene at the gas station at the outset of the action is neatly down. Reno's character has no qualms about openly attacking the police. In one scene, he recognizes a cop in a car near a dock and rams the car with the cop. The airport heist set-piece in the last half-hour and the son's struggle to go straight are electrifying. "Le premier cercle" is believable from fade-in to fade-out, and Tuel's 95-minute movie never wears out its welcome.

Chris Knipp Despite the Armenian church service and the historical introduction, the ethnic theme is a bit weak (and do the Armenians in real life actually have their own mafiosi?), and this hasn't the richness of Melville, or 'The Godfather,' or Téchiné's 'Les Voleurs.' But this film is satisfying precisely for the qualities that cause some to dismiss it: it's understated, elegant, and sensually pleasing, with beautiful images and a musical accompaniment far above genre and cool, classy criminals who project a sense of being fearless and professional. This is the kind of stylish European crime film with sleek cars, sunlit villas, and drives along the Riviera that you can enjoy for the atmosphere as much as anything else. Everyone dresses in black. Sami Bouajila's cop too (Bouajila the actor also himself a consummate professional, very solid here); his black outfits are just a bit dustier and shabbier. Gaspard Ulliel grows up here from most of his earlier roles (after already having become macho and heroic as the peasant hero of the 2007 'Jacquou le croquant') slicking his hair back, bulging out of his designer clothes, peering over his designer shades. Both he and Réno show very little emotion, projecting instead the dedication of stoical members of a tight clan. I don't know if you can believe Antona's plan of breaking away. How is he supposed to do that by taking over a hotel in the Camargue set up by somebody his father works with, right under his nose, and without the money for the down payment? This is less convincing and less well developed than something like Thomas Seyr (Romain Duris) wanting to become a concert pianist in Audiard's 'The Beat My Heart Skipped'. But this to me is like the beautiful, elegant 1957 'No Sun in Venice' ('Sait-on jamais'), directed by Roger Vadim, which a user wisely said is "worth it for the music and the visuals." Only 'Le premier cercle' ('The Ultimate Heist,' sadly generic title) doesn't have a classic sound track by the Modern Jazz Quartet. 'Le premier cercle' also relates to the Marseilles-based "Frank Riva" TV trilogy starring the aging, mellower Alain Delon. But 'Le premier cercle' is more stylish and restrained. It lets you wallow in cool.

socrates99 I'm a Jean Reno fan but he's only one of the great things about this movie. I will agree that the beginning is a little rough. You have to think about what's going on and let it go keep its own pace for awhile. But for all its lack of grace in the beginning, nothing fatal goes on and it easily makes up for it in Acts II and III. This film is one of the most economical I've ever seen. There's hardly a wasted scene and the characters are all quite believable. Next to Jean Reno as Milo, the next most important role is played by Gaspard Ulliel as his son, Anton. The young man who plays Reno's son is quite capable and is a good match with Reno.The story is a simple one: young man wants to leave the crime family he belongs to and go straight. I would say there's little new in the story but that's not quite right, on reflection there's a lot of very important detail that really makes the story come alive. I really admire this film's ability to elicit real crime techniques and ambiance, all while giving the audience an unforgettable travelogue of what I think was southern France. Suffice it to say, I intend to seek out this director's work from now on. His name is Laurent Tuel and I believe the man deserves quite a lot of credit.

jotix100 The film begins with a newsreel account of the Armenian genocide of the last century. It doesn't serve any purpose because the story we are invited to watch is not about that horrible page in the history of that country, but one in which descendants of the fleeing Armenians, settled in France, have chosen a life of crime.Milo Malakian, the ruthless head of the clan, rules supreme over his men. His own son, Anton, is part of the gang. Anton, alas, has a secret life. He has been having a hot affair with the nurse that is seeing his own grandmother. This young man has had it and wants to break away from his father and a life of crime. For that, he has set his eyes on a property he wants to turn into a sort of boutique hotel. Because of that, he must keep a low profile.Milo, on the other hand, has something else in mind. He is planning a caper that will make him and his associates rich men. They want to steal the money transfer that will be taken on a commercial flight from a nearby airport. Saunier, the police inspector of the area, figures the group is up to no good. Keeping an eye on the money transfer, seems to be the right thing to do. Little prepares Saunier and his men for the way the Malakian gang will employ to get to the money.Laurent Tuel directed this action film. The film reminds us of other pictures of the genre, although we must admit, it kept our attention. It is to Mr. Tuel's credit to have kept the pace in the movie, as it never became dull. The heist at the airport reminded us of a similar incident that occurred in France not too long ago. How closer is this story to what really happened, is not clear to us.Jean Reno appears as Milo, the boss of the group. Gaspar Ulliel does justice to his Anton, a man that came from a criminal background and realizes there is much more to life because he has fallen in love for the beautiful Elodie, played by Vahina Giocante. Sami Bouajila is seen as Saunier, the police in pursuit of the bad guys.