A film by Cédric Jimenez
With: Gilles Lellouche, Adèle Exarchopoulos, Stéphane Bak, Hugo Dillon, Louis Garrel, Mélanie Berthinier, Valeria Bruni Tedeschi, Daphné Patakia, Romain Duris, Artus
In the near future, Paris is divided into three zones that separate social classes, and no one can escape ALMA, a predictive AI that has revolutionized law enforcement. When ALMA’s creator is assassinated, Salia, a top agent, and Zem, a jaded cop, are forced to work together to solve a murder that may expose the dark secrets of the system they serve.
Our rate: **
With Dog51, Cédric Jimenez tries his hand, rather successfully, at science fiction. To describe it, let’s say that we are probably somewhere between Luc Besson (Nikita, Léon rather than The Fifth Element) and Ridley Scott (Blade Runner), with a center of gravity closer to the former than the latter. Despite a few obvious plot devices (something it has in common with Luc Besson), particularly in the development of the romance, which is very heavy-handed and hardly believable, these fit rather awkwardly into the dystopia, which is much more interesting. Cédric Jimenez denies having wanted to place the theme of artificial intelligence at the heart of the film, yet compared to the book he adapted, it is an addition. The dystopia takes us into a world that is ultimately quite close to our own, with Paris itself undergoing little change, creating, unlike the romance, a sense of reality and defending a political vision that deserves to be explored: what would happen if we moved towards total security, if we classified people according to their social class, and if we moved towards total repression, using every possible and imaginable means to minimize the risk of attacks? In short, what would happen if we continued the trends that are emerging all over the world? Jimenez takes a simple approach here; unlike Blade Runner, he does not seek to explore a distant (at the time) imaginary world or to draw on science fiction. Nor does he seek to establish a strong aesthetic, and on the imaginary side, he also relies on a form of minimalism that favors reality, the recording of what can be observed here and there: barriers, drones, artificial intelligence, heavily armed police, increasingly frequent checks. He thus places himself in an almost contemporary Paris, which has become an inaccessible zone for the poorest. The possibility of reclassification, of progress in society, is virtually non-existent, except through an illusion created by politicians who play on dreams and offer a television game show that allows children to access the paradise that is Zone 1. Instead of a Blade Runner-esque universe, Jimenez relies on other effective elements to fuel his futuristic thriller. First, there is a rather well-written plot, an investigation that progresses step by step, with its share of twists and turns, somewhat predictable but without certainty. Secondly, there is the action score entrusted to the duo of Adèle Exarchopoulos and Gilles Lellouche. The former is very credible, thanks to the humanity she manages to bring out despite her surly facade, the latter suffering a little from his age to be totally believable, but his dynamic and endearing puppy-dog eyes could have an effect, and he performs very honestly in the stunts he is asked to do. Thirdly, while caution is required when it comes to creating a visual universe, conversely, the sound universe, ambient sounds and music play a very important role in creating a stressful atmosphere, and do so rather successfully. Ultimately, Dog 51 is unlikely to join the very select club of great science fiction films, but it offers quality entertainment and, as we said, an interesting subject.
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