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Editorial Reviews
Amazon.com
This angry, antiauthoritarian French film--originally titled La Haine--concerns three young guys (a Jew, an Arab, a black) who decide to take on the police after a friend is brutally beaten. There isn't much going on in this black-and-white drama beyond its violence (which can be pretty hard to watch, such as an interrogation scene that incorporates torture) and gritty observations of wayward youths hanging out on the fringes of Paris. Certainly, there isn't much in the way of insight, and director Mathieu Kassovitz seems to have absorbed more of the excesses of America's independent film scene, especially Spike Lee at his most indulgent, than its blessings. But if it's edge and rawness you want, this has it--with subtitles. --Tom Keogh
Product Description
Mathieu Kassovitz (The Crimson Rivers) took the film world by storm with La haine (Hate), a gritty, unsettling, and visually explosive look at racial and cultural volatility in modern-day France, specifically the low-income banlieues on Paris's outskirts. Aimlessly passing their days in the concrete environs of their dead-end suburbia, Vinz (Irreversible's Vincent Cassel), Hubert (The Constant Gardener's Hubert Koundé), and Saïd (Three Kings Saïd Taghmaoui) white, black, and Arab give human faces to France's immigrant and otherwise marginalized populations, their resentment at their situation simmering until it reaches a boiling point. A work of tough beauty, La haine is a landmark of contemporary French cinema and a gripping reflection of its country's ongoing identity crisis.
Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
12 of 13 people found the following review helpful
By A Customer
Format:VHS Tape
I loved this movie the first time I saw it and have seen it at least a dozen times since. It is a powerful story told as seen through the eyes and lives of three friends who are living in Paris during the riots. The direction of this movie is delicious and so is the character development. A beautiful job is done in introducing each of the three main characters and in giving a bit of insight in to each of their personal lives. One is a tough guy with a chip on his shoulder and something to prove, another a good guy who has no choice but to sell hash to support his family, and the third a kid who doesn't seem to care about much other than getting laid and trying to impress his friends. What really caught me about this movie was how realistic I found it. It was funny and hard and real and disturbing and fabulous. I highly recommemend this film to anyone who enjoys quality and substance. It has an AWESOME soundtrack too!!!
5 of 5 people found the following review helpful
By phaedon
Format:DVD
i have waited forever to buy this movie states-side. the only copy i've ever owned was on vhs and i lost it a long time ago. its been so long since the movie first came out; i remember that it was available as a zone 2 dvd in a european magazine or newspaper (it is common in some countries for them to distribute dvds this way).
anyway. im curious to see what criterion adds to this movie. this movie is a definitive "hip-hop" classic. and not many people know about it here. truly a gem.
anyway. im curious to see what criterion adds to this movie. this movie is a definitive "hip-hop" classic. and not many people know about it here. truly a gem.
5 of 5 people found the following review helpful
Format:DVD
I spent $40 a few years ago to buy the Zone 2 version, which I didn't know was unplayable in my DVD player. I will gladly, but somewhat grudgingly, spend another $30 to get a copy of this movie that I can watch without limitations. Truly an eye-opening movie; France's "Boyz in tha Hood," only better in pretty much every way.
7 of 8 people found the following review helpful
Format:DVD
This is one of those movies that sticks in your head. I rented it on VHS years ago when it first came out. I heard about it through its attachment to Jodi Foster's production company Egg Pictures. They help it to get released in the States. From the opening voiceover hurtling towards the ground, to the brutal ending, it will move you. The performances are terrific, and the screenplay does a fabulous job of ratcheting up the tension as the movie progresses.
Whatever your feelings and knowledge about the issues surrounding immigration, this movie shows you how from the immigrants' perspective, the tensions of their new society can clash with those of their original ethnic society into a powderkeg waiting to blow. The three main characters are young and in over their heads. Their feelings of helplessness combine with the fortuitous discovery of a policeman's lost gun to lead them where their not sure they really want to go. It's an intersting and powerful dilemma to watch.
Highly recommended!
Whatever your feelings and knowledge about the issues surrounding immigration, this movie shows you how from the immigrants' perspective, the tensions of their new society can clash with those of their original ethnic society into a powderkeg waiting to blow. The three main characters are young and in over their heads. Their feelings of helplessness combine with the fortuitous discovery of a policeman's lost gun to lead them where their not sure they really want to go. It's an intersting and powerful dilemma to watch.
Highly recommended!
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful
Format:VHS Tape
Hate is a strong film about lost youth where the apparent message strikes the audience in the forehead like a nail-pegged baseball bat. The story is set the day after nightly riots in a Parisian ghetto after the young Arabian man, Abdel, was brutally assaulted by the police. Vinz, Said, and Hubert are three friends of Abdel that are set adrift in anger toward the police as they try to find reason and justice within their social environment. The impulsive Vinz, performed by Vincent Cassel, acts tough as he knows that he has a gun that he found after a police officer had accidentally lost it in the riots. Said is the follower who glorifies the violence and strives to be respected as he has a twisted view of what respect is. Hubert dreams of getting out of the ghetto as he does not glorify the violence within the ghetto while his two friends do. The audience follows these three characters throughout a full day as they are sitting around, getting into trouble, and learning through their errors. Kassovitz creates an authentic and explosive atmosphere which becomes the grounds for an exhaustive examination of the socioeconomic milieu of young adults in a poor Parisian ghetto. In the end, Kassovitz succeeds in developing an excellent persuasive and disturbing cinematic experience.
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
By j-killah
Format:DVD
La Haine is a film that flew beneath my radar for some time. Released to critical acclaim in 1995, it won numerous awards, and earned both the support and criticism of members of the French Government at the time. It explores a day in the life of three hood kids growing up in a public housing project outside of Paris. The film effectively and at times disturbingly shows the tension between the police and Paris' minority communities. Although it is 12 years old, its exploration of police brutality and racial/class disparity is relevant and applicable to modern American society and probably more generally any society in which there is an unequal distribution of wealth.
La Haine is shot in gritty black and white, and is subtitled. Although it is a deep film, it is still an entertaining and absorbing crime/hood drama. It is raw in its depiction of kids growing up on the fringes of society. It is not pretentious or cliche like 'Crash', a film with a similar theme. This is both an artistic and entertaining film, which retains its power after multiple viewings. La Haine deserves to be watched.
La Haine is shot in gritty black and white, and is subtitled. Although it is a deep film, it is still an entertaining and absorbing crime/hood drama. It is raw in its depiction of kids growing up on the fringes of society. It is not pretentious or cliche like 'Crash', a film with a similar theme. This is both an artistic and entertaining film, which retains its power after multiple viewings. La Haine deserves to be watched.
Most Recent Customer Reviews
1.0 out of 5 stars
Daughter rented this for a class. THIS IS a piece of Eurotrash crap.
There is absolutely no reason for anyone to rent this.. My daughter's modern french history professor assigned it. It was and is a waste of time. Read more
Published 1 month ago by R. C. Mueller
4.0 out of 5 stars
Good movie
Quality was clear with subtitles (it's in French). I liked the film themes as well as the perspective it gave the viewer.
Published 1 month ago by Dominique
2.0 out of 5 stars
Not a feel good movie.
All the leads are unlikeable, but the title is quite appropriate. I think propraganda films, which I believe this to be, are evil and do no good.
Published 5 months ago by Henry J. Hummell
5.0 out of 5 stars
Raw & Explosive - Pulls No Punches
I first experienced this powerful movie during the mid-90's, and it remains one of my favorite films. Read more
Published 7 months ago by Compay
4.0 out of 5 stars
Not the best film ever made, but pretty good
I found this movie to be slightly overrated. I did not think that the film offered a realistic view of the youths living in Paris' ghetto-ized suburbs, but rather, a story verging... Read more
Published 9 months ago by J.
5.0 out of 5 stars
A Classic
This movie translates well across french/american culture and remains pertinent to present day as when it was made. Read more
Published 10 months ago by Lady Chuckadove
5.0 out of 5 stars
Best movie ever!
Excellent item and DVD special edition, which the movie La Haine even in regular DVD edition is no longer available in France (where it was made). Read more
Published 23 months ago by Amelie LeBlanc
5.0 out of 5 stars
Very Pleased!
The DVD came in great condition - I would have never know it was used had I not been told.
Published on February 20, 2011 by Yolanda C Rodriguez
5.0 out of 5 stars
Faster than expected shipping.
I wanted to get this film for my sister, but it was hard to find in the months before Christmas. I was told to expect this item up to 2 weeks after Christmas, but I received it... Read more
Published on January 21, 2011 by Cass
5.0 out of 5 stars
If you want to understand NYC or LA, watch this film about Paris
First of all, even though this film is set in Paris, and is in French (with English subtitles), please don't think of it as a French film. Read more
Published on October 4, 2010 by Gregory
