A Prophet (Un prophete) (2010)
93%RT Audience Score: 89%
Awards & Nominations: Nominated for 1 Oscar
52 wins & 55 nominations total
Featuring an impressive star turn by newcomer Tahar Rahim, A Prophet is a French gangster film filled with arresting, immediate details.
If you’re looking for a movie that will keep you on the edge of your seat, A Prophet is the one for you. Despite its lengthy runtime, the film never loses its grip on your attention. And while I’m not usually a fan of violence as a solution, the mature performances and expert direction make it hard to look away. Plus, who doesn’t love a good prison thriller? Jacques Audiard has truly outdone himself with this one, creating a masterpiece that seamlessly blends gritty realism with haunting fantasy. A Prophet is a must-see for any fan of the genre.
Production Company(ies)
Why Not Productions, Chic Films, Page 114
Distributor
Sony Pictures Classics
Release Type
Theatrical
Filming Location(s)
Paris, France
MPAA / Certificate
Rated R for strong violence, sexual content, nudity, language and drug material
Year of Release
2010
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Color:Color
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Sound mix:Dolby Digital DTS
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Aspect ratio:1.85 : 1
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Runtime:2h 34m
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Language(s):French, Arabic, Corsican
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Country of origin:France, Italy
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Release date:Release Date (Theaters): Feb 26, 2010 Limited
Release Date (Streaming): Aug 3, 2010
Genre(s)
Crime/Drama
Keyword(s)
starring Tahar Rahim, Niels Arestrup, Adel Bencherif, Hichem Yacoubi, Reda Kateb, Antoine Basler, directed by Jacques Audiard, written by Jacques Audiard, Thomas Bidegain, Abdel Raouf Dafri, Nicolas Peufaillit, crime, drama, French, box office, budget, reviewed by Deborah Ross, Ed Koch, Amy Taubin, Joshua Rothkopf, Roger Moore, David Germain, Brian Eggert, Diane Carson, Jason Best, Richard Propes, David Lamble, Tahar Rahim star turn, Corsican mob boss, Malik El Djebena, Muslim man, French prison, crime drama, gangster film, powerful, assignments, mentor, rising in the mob ranks, enemies, conflict, R rating, Martine Cassinelli, Lauranne Bourrachot, Pascal Caucheteux, Marco Cherqui producers, Sony Pictures Classics distributor
Worldwide gross: $17,874,044
Worldwide gross (inflation-adjusted): $24,297,734
Worldwide gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 1,635
Worldwide tickets sold (est.): 2,649,698
US/Canada gross: $2,087,720
US/Canada gross (inflation-adjusted): $2,838,018
US/Canada gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 1,949
US/Canada opening weekend: $163,773
US/Canada opening weekend (inflation-adjusted): $222,631
US/Canada opening weekend ranking (inflation-adjusted): 1,627
Budget and Earnings Details
Production budget (est.): $13,000,000
Production budget (inflation-adjusted): $17,672,025
Production budget ranking: 1,429
Marketing and distribution budget (inflation-adjusted est.): $9,516,385
Box office net earnings to date (inflation-adjusted est.): -$2,890,676
ROI to date (est.): -11%
ROI ranking: 1,452
Niels Arestrup – César Luciani
Adel Bencherif – Ryad
Hichem Yacoubi – Reyeb
Reda Kateb – Jordi
Antoine Basler – Pilicci
Director(s)
Jacques Audiard
Writer(s)
Jacques Audiard, Thomas Bidegain, Thomas Bidegain, Jacques Audiard, Abdel Raouf Dafri, Nicolas Peufaillit
Producer(s)
Martine Cassinelli, Lauranne Bourrachot, Pascal Caucheteux, Marco Cherqui
Film Festivals
Awards & Nominations
Nominated for 1 Oscar
52 wins & 55 nominations total
Academy Awards
Oscar Nominees
All Critics (163) | Top Critics (61) | Fresh (157) | Rotten (6)
Usually, I don’t much like films in which males throw violence at any problem that comes their way… But this is such an intensely mature piece of work featuring such intensely mature performances that I was too involved to let it bother me.
August 30, 2018
Deborah Ross
The Spectator
TOP CRITIC
A Prophet is not a fabulous film, but it is well worth seeing. Although it is 2 hours 29 minutes long and its story is not surprising, it is always riveting.
January 13, 2018
Ed Koch
The Atlantic
TOP CRITIC
But with its lush Alexandre Desplat score, deeply shadowed compositions, and fluid, understated camera movement, A Prophet is distinctly an Audiard construction.
July 12, 2013
Amy Taubin
Film Comment Magazine
TOP CRITIC
November 18, 2011 | Rating: 5/5
Joshua Rothkopf
Time Out
TOP CRITIC
A movie that stands with the best prison thrillers from any country; a film that vividly illustrates the connection between prison and the violent, radical form of Islam that keeps much of Europe on edge.
April 21, 2010 | Rating: 3.5/4
Roger Moore
Orlando Sentinel
TOP CRITIC
Audiard has talked about the prospects of a sequel to A Prophet. With the foundation he has built here, it would be a welcome one.
April 2, 2010
David Germain
Associated Press
TOP CRITIC
An incisive crime saga told within the confines of concrete walls and deprived humanity.
March 11, 2022 | Rating: 4/4
Brian Eggert
Deep Focus Review
For an intense, gripping two-and-a-half hours, not a minute is gratuitous as every scene contributes details significant to a power shift of brutal proportions.
October 13, 2021
Diane Carson
KDHX (St. Louis)
The film’s top dog, though, has to be Audiard, who directs with complete control, effortlessly fusing beady-eyed social realism, savage action and hallucinatory fantasy to create a searing crime movie masterpiece.
November 28, 2020
Jason Best
Movie Talk
One of the finest prison sagas in recent years.
September 20, 2020 | Rating: 3.5/4.0
Richard Propes
TheIndependentCritic.com
Jacques Audiard outdoes himself with a prison-based coming-of-age tale that is also a magic realism-charged ghost story.
June 10, 2020
David Lamble
Bay Area Reporter
A Prophet’s distinction is its refusal to play to convention.
January 22, 2020
Felicia Feaster
Charleston City Paper…
Plot
Nineteen year-old Franco-Algerian Malik El Djebena is just starting his six year prison sentence in Brécourt. Although he has spent the better part of his life in juvenile detention, this stint is his first in an adult prison. Beyond the division of Corsicans and Muslims in the prison (the Corsicans who with their guard connections rule what happens in the prison), he has no known friends or enemies inside. He is just hoping to serve his time in peace and without incident, despite having no prospects once he’s out of jail since he’s illiterate and has no support outside of the prison. Due to logistics, the head of Corsican inmates, a sadistic mafioso named César Luciani, co-opts Malik as part of the Corsicans’ activities, not only regarding what happens inside the prison, but also continued criminal activities outside. The innocent Malik has no idea what to do but cooperate. This move does not sit well with the other Corsicans, who only see Malik as a dirty Algerian, and the Muslims who now mistrust him. But as time goes on, Malik works to save himself while in prison, while setting up his life post prison on his own terms. Both his demon and his salvation in prison is the specter of one of the first people he really got to know during his incarceration.
Trivia
Goofs / Tidbits
Featuring an impressive star turn by newcomer Tahar Rahim.
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