Agents secrets (2004)

User Rating:

5.5/10   

Director:

Frédéric Schoendoerffer

Writers:

Yann Brion (writer)
Jean Cosmos (writer)

Release Date:

31 March 2004 (Belgium)

Genre:

Crime | Action | Thriller

Plot:

Moles threaten to foil a team of secret agents' plan.

Plot Keywords:

Casablanca | Framed | Posing As Husband And Wife | Morocco | Undercover Agent

Cast

Vincent Cassel	...	Brisseau
Monica Bellucci	...	Barbara / Lisa
André Dussollier	...	Colonel Grasset
Charles Berling	...	Eugène
Bruno Todeschini	...	Homme maigre en civil
Sergio Peris-Mencheta	...	Raymond
Ludovic Schoendoerffer	...	Loïc
Eric Savin	...	Tony
Serge Avedikian	...	Igor Lipovsky
Gabrielle Lazure	...	Véronique Lipovsky
Najwa Nimri	...	Maria Menendez
Simón Andreu	...	Maître Deligny
Clément Thomas	...	Homme de main 1
Rosanna Walls	...	L'amie de Maria Menendez
Jay Benedict	...	L'Américain

Also Known As:

Spy Bound (Hong Kong: English title) (Singapore: English title)
Agentes secretos (Spain)
Secret Agents (International: English title)

Runtime:

France:109 min

Country:

France | Italy | Spain

Language:

French | English | German | Spanish

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital | DTS

Certification:

Germany:16 | Singapore:NC-16 | Switzerland:12 (canton of Geneva) | Switzerland:12 (canton of Vaud) | Netherlands:16

Filming Locations:

Casablanca, Morocco

Company:

La Chauve Souris

Trivia:

The first part of the movie takes inspiration of the Rainbow Warrior case that has been slightly adapted. Events are transposed in Casablanca and the sabotaged boat carries weapons instead of environmental militants.

Goofs:

Errors made by characters (possibly deliberate errors by the filmmakers): Colonel Grasset mentions that Lipovsky was born in "Riga, the capital of Estonia". In reality, Riga is the capital of Latvia, Eastonia's real capital is Tallinn.

What happens when secret agents ain't so secret?

It's not often that you come across a film in which, for the first eleven minutes, the only words spoken are: 'On the left!' Couple that with an opening sequence that begins on the dark side of the moon, slowly zooming down to earth – almost like a Google Earth video -- and to a ferry, somewhere in the Mediterranean Sea, to finally stop upon a man's eyes at extreme close-up. And, all done with only two almost seamless dissolves between the computer wizardry and the real McCoy... And all the time, the pulsating sound track from Bruno Coulais hits you almost as forcibly as three assassins forcibly and gruesomely dispatch the hapless agent returning to base...

Such is the combination of cinematic and directorial skills as evidenced by the director, Frederic Schoendoerffer and cinematography by Jean-Pierre Sauvaire. Add to that the consummate acting by the likes of Vincent Cassel -- unforgettable in La Haine (1992) – and Monica Belluci, probably best known to US audiences in The Passion of Christ (2004), and you have a cinematic thriller treat that the French do oh-so-well and oh-so-often.

Take a team of five agents from an unspecified secret French agency, add a notorious gun-runner from Russia, mix with the intrigue and settings in and around Casablanca, in Morocco, stir it all up with CIA mercenaries trying to spoil the fun, and top it all off with betrayal in the midst of the French team and you have 109 minutes of dirty dealings, and some break-neck action that might just leave you breathless. Some of the stunts were simply…stunning; in fact, I just had to re-view – again and again – the last car chase with the most spectacular head-on impact I've yet seen. But then, I'm a sucker for a good car chase ever since I saw Bullit (1968). What! You haven't seen Bullit yet...? Tsk, tsk...

The plot is straightforward and the director uses visuals to show most of it with a bare minimum of dialog. It is, however, a relatively complex story, with a number of sub-plots: the French agent who wants to quit, and who pays the price for trying; the degree of collusion between government and dirty business; the nature of the arms trade and why it continues. But, hey, we all know that it's a dirty world, and there are dirty people in it, always ready to do their bit for...for...oh, yeah, democracy.

To some extent, I was let down by the final scenes. On reflection, however, it was appropriate, if a bit flat – especially after all that blazing action. You be the judge when you see it.