Review of Mesrine: Public Enemy #1 (2008) by Chriss M — 10 Mar 2010

Mesrine Part 2 is action packed, tense and always gripping. Very rarely does the action slow, but when it does, you're treated to some fine character acting from Vincent Cassel.

The best aspect of the movie is the action. From the set up to the execution, the sequences are almost flawless- but not quite. In most of the action scenes the camera is shaky in order to convey the sense of chaos and confusion; a nice directorial touch maybe, but not beneficial to the enjoyment of the action, as it makes the scenes feel slightly cramped and claustrophobic; very disorienting.

Cassel's performance is flawless. I also enjoyed Matthieu Amairic's, he's a pretty great actor too. The character development of Mesrine, particularly in this part I felt was slightly disappointing. Filled with good intentions, Richet set out to show Mesrine as more than just a two dimensional character; neither villain nor hero, simply a man. Unfortunately, Richet fails at this. Instead, I think he makes Mesrine cool, dangerous and sophisticated. Really, all that was missing was 'The name's Mesrine, Jacques Mesrine". So because of this, I feel the film was a failed attempt, but still enjoyable to watch as an action movie with a bit of depth.

Narrative wise, I'd have been much happier if there was some sort of focus on the changing public opinion surrounding Mesrine. There are hints that things change as Mesrine becomes more ruthless, but we never really get a good impression of what the public in general think. Perhaps Richet expects people to already be aware?

To conclude: Mesrine's portrayal is borderline anti-hero; there aren't enough scenes showing his obvious psychopathy and ruthlessness to balance the movie out. The direction isn't as inventive or as artistic as in the first part, and the action scenes aren't quite as exciting.