Vincent Cassel, Hubert Kounde, Said Taghmaoui

The story, unfolding over a 24-hour period, centers on Vinz, Said and Hubert--very close friends from very different backgrounds. Vinz is white and Jewish. Said, an Arab. Hubert is Black. They are thr...( read more  read more... )ee disenfranchised youths trying to find meaning in what appears to be an otherwise meaningless existence. During a riot the night before, a friend of theirs is arrested and then beaten while in police custody. He lies clinging to life in a hospital. One more riot in the drug- and crime-ridden housing projects, one more case of police brutality. Same old shit, only one big difference: a gleaming, chrome-plated Smith & Wesson 44 that falls into their hands, courtesy of the Paris Police Department. The weapon, which one of the riot cops lost during the previous night''s chaos, becomes the catalyst for the story''s climax.

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95% liked it

32,052 ratings

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100% liked it

13 critics

R, 1 hr. 35 min.

Directed by: Mathieu Kassovitz

Release Date: February 9, 1996

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DVD Release Date: April 17, 2007

Stats: 2,403 reviews

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Flixster Reviews (2,403)


  • October 1, 2009
    A fantastic film from the mid-nineties. It?s a shame Kassovitz has never come close to producing another film of the same calibre. The three leading actors are on top form, it?s so good it?s been ripped off ever since (Paul Thomas Anderson, I'm talking about you! Not only did you...( read more) use the fantastic and best scene in the movie but you used it in Boogie nights and passed it off as your own. I continue to really hate/love (some) your films)
  • September 20, 2009
    Hubert: Heard about the guy who fell off a skyscraper? On his way down past each floor, he kept saying to reassure himself: So far so good... so far so good... so far so good. How you fall doesn't matter. It's how you land.

    A quality drama all around that features three good l...( read more)eads, a solid story concerning race relations, a missing gun, and police brutality, and a wonderful visual style that starts by filming the story in black and white and continues by maintaining a wonderful sense of cinematography throughout. The subject matter is bleak, but the film manages to grab you and keep you interested, working with how well made it is.

    Set during a single day in crime ridden area of France, which has just gone through another riot, three friends, a Jew - Vinz, an Arab - Said, and an African - Hubert spend the day dealing with some issues and a couple particular pieces of information. A friend of theirs has been hospitalized due to police brutality. Also, one of the police officers involved in the riot has lost their gun. Vinz happens to find the gun, and believes he should kill a cop if their friend dies at some point during the day. As the day goes on, the three encounter various situations, including a few run ins with cops who assume the men to be up to no good based on how they look and where they are from, as well as arguments/discussions between them and others about the basic social situation in their home.

    While watching this film, I was certainly reminded of films like Do the Right Thing, Battle of Algiers, and City of God. It certainly helps that this film is up to par with those. Never acting preachy or working to prove a specific point in any direction, the film seems to effortlessly flow due to the work of the three leads. Each character is different, with different backgrounds and understandings of where they are living. The film works well to develop each character, weaving them in and out of different aspects of the story.

    The direction by Mathieu Kassovitz is solid, as I've mentioned. Setting the tone straight off with a short monologue and news footage of various riots in France, the film works well to keep one interested and intrigued by its presentation. Certainly keeping up this spirit is how Kassovitz works with his camera. A number of subtle touches work well to make the most out of a low budget film.

    Without delving to deep into the actual race relations aspect of the film, I was intrigued throughout with how this film dealt with its issues. With these things being said about this material, the film is also quite funny at times. There is some dark material, but the mood is certainly given a few breaths occasionally, which works to hold a balance.

    Very good, very well made.

    Hubert: So far so good...so far so good...
  • September 8, 2009

    A powerful film about a troubled society, La Haine is difficult to take. As in the best human dramas, its characters are neither totally good nor totally bad: Vinz, a Jew, Hubert, an African, and Said, and Arab. In the context of riots taking place in the suburbs of Paris, mos

    ...( read more)tly populated by immigrants, they must confront injustice, the prejudice they experience from the police because of their ethinicity, their desire for revenge, and the principles "they learned at school". Aware of who they are, where they come from, and why they might be looked down upon, they embark in a 24-hour oddyssey through the streets of the suburbs, and then Paris itself, during which all they really do is... nothing. Only that we, as outsiders, get to watch the origins and the consequences of the hate they feel towards racism in French society.

    Although it is, as I said, difficult to digest, it's also very much up to date, and relevant: some things never change, and discrimination is one of them, for whatever reason. The place where these characters live, an ugly, desolate, hostile neighborhood, and the things that they do (talk about drugs, and sex, do drugs, beat each other up, beat policemen up, talk about how everything is full of shit) bring this issue of HATE to a specific location in time and place, but it is not limited to that. In a way, Vinz, Hubert, and Said, are archetypes: even though the director most likely had in mind the Paris riots exclusively, the plot is universal. The characters are people, real people.


    All three actors are fantastic. They wear the skin of their characters perfectly, and the act exactly like we would expect them to. The cinematography and editing, while not brilliant or outstanding or groundbreaking, manages to create the necessary atmosphere. The pace is also just right.


    In conclusion, La Haine is a profound film that requires tolerance and empathy. I guess that, in a way, those are the things it's supposed to teach us. At the same time, it also shows us that not because these characters suffer the effects of racism, they are immediately exempt from also harboring feelings of racism, or aggresiveness -and how do you judge them then? You don't. By the end, it's obvious that the hate they receive produces hate inside them, too. An angry, brilliant film.

  • August 20, 2009
    "Three Young Friends... One Last Chance."

    Abdel, a local hoodlum, is hospitalized after a riot, where a policeman lost his gun. His friend Vinz finds it and claims he will kill a cop if Abdel dies.

    REVIEW
    ...( read more)nt>
    I have never seen anything like this one. The first image strikes us right in the face: the world, lost in a emptiness of black, is covered by the blowing slo-mo flames of a cocktail molotov. The story may look simple. But that is the exact way it wants to be. Here we have a journey into the places hate lives. Here we journey through the deep entrails of hate, which grows, and cannot be stopped. When you think everything is right, everything is wrong. When you find peace, war seeks us. Here we are close-up to the ghettos we want to avoid, at the same time people who live there are always thinking of revenge, even if they are subject of social and physical abuse. Technically the movie is genius, beautifully shot in black and white, with a great music selection and three great leads, which look and think like they were really from the streets. Some scenes stroke me particularly (the opening shot, the camera wandering over the rooftops as the music spreads, the final scene) and will still strike me in the future. This movie has also a great amount of juice to be drunk, and requires multiple viewings to be seen properly. A work of genius, which reflects the quality of young values when they are given the proper treatment.
  • April 24, 2009
    Visually astonishing, the complex lives of the main trio left me a little bemused by the end but an excellent start and superb direction and cinematography.
  • August 17, 2009
    A brilliant view of the projects and Arab slums in France. The characters are created very well and perform very well. The music is also quite memorable.
  • August 4, 2009
    Protesto (La Haine) Mathieu Kassovitz'in 1995 y?l?nda çekti?i Frans?z filmi. Film, Paris'in gettolar?nda ya?ayan biri pied-noir (Said), biri yahudi (Vinz), biri ise siyahi (Hubert) üç arkada??n hikâyesini konu alarak, Fransa'da gettolarda ya?ayan gençlerin hayat?ndan bir kesit su...( read more)nmaktad?r.

    Kassovitz'in filmi ?rkç?l??a ve sosyal s?n?f farkl?l?klar?na yapt??? göndermeler nedeniyle hem Fransa'da hem de dünyada oldukça ses getirmi?tir. Film, siyah-beyaz çekilmi? olmas?n?n yan? s?ra müzikleri (örne?in, patronla derdini anlatan Jamaikal?'n?n söyledi?i ?ark? gibi) ve görece k?sa olmas? gibi özellikleri nedeniyle vurucu bir atmosfer yarat?yor.
  • July 24, 2009
    This exciting, vividly stylized crime-drama is a showcase for some breathtaking camerawork and a vessel for a grim social outlook. Headlined by strong performances and a fast, absorbing structure, it is a movie full of physical violence that is also surprisingly insightful at times.
  • July 3, 2009
    davvero peso. impressionante come tutto ciò che sccede durante il film non faccia altro che rendere il finale ancora più "emozionante"
    la storia dell'uomo che cade dal palazzo poi..
  • June 16, 2009
    French angst. Very well made and it has an authentic air about it. Believable characters

Critic Reviews


January 1, 2000
Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times

Hate is, I suppose, a Generation X film, whatever that means, but more mature and insightful than the American Gen X movies. full review

View more La Haine (Hate) reviews at RottenTomatoes.com

Comments


  • Romei
    June 15, 2006
    This movie is great. It exposes the divides found in paris and urban french areas. The black and white film stock and bleak outlook make the climax even more fitting. Definetly one to watch.

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  • In the explosive French film "La Haine" (Hate), the director Matthieu Kassovitz appears in a cameo as what?  Answer »

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