Polisse
2011 Directed by Maïwenn Le Besco
Synopsis
The daily grind for the cops of the Police Department's Juvenile Protection Unit - taking in child molesters, busting underage pickpockets and chewing over relationship issues at lunch; interrogating abusive parents, taking statements from children, confronting the excesses of teen sexuality, enjoying solidarity with colleagues and laughing uncontrollably at the most unthinkable moments. Knowing the worst exists and living with it. How do these cops balance their private lives and the reality they confront every working day? Fred, the group's hypersensitive wild card, is going to have a hard time facing the scrutiny of Melissa, a photographer on a Ministry of the Interior assignment to document the unit.
Cast
Karin Viard Joey Starr Marina Foïs Nicolas Duvauchelle Maïwenn Le Besco Karole Rocher Emmanuelle Bercot Frédéric Pierrot Arnaud Henriet Naidra Ayadi Jérémie Elkaïm Riccardo Scamarcio Sandrine Kiberlain Wladimir Yordanoff Louis-Do de Lencquesaing Laurent Bateau Carole Franck Anne Suarez Audrey Lamy Sophie Cattani
Popular reviews
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Based on real cases, POLISSE follows the actions and experiences of members of the Child Protection Unit in the Parisian police force. Awarded the 'Jury Prize' at the 2011 Cannes Film Festival, POLISSE merges documentary-like realism with a fragmented narrative akin to an art-house sensibility.
Instead of being a case by case procedural, the film purposely thwarts our knowledge of the children who fall victim to abuse or the conclusive guilt of the accused adults. Instead, the film breathlessly shifts the focus onto the members of the 'CPU' and spreads a broad canvass to give us glimpses into their lives on and off the job. Perhaps unsurprisingly due to the difficult job they do, we witness the camaraderie and commitment…
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Whenever anything is compared to The Wire my ears instantly prick up. It’s been 3 long years since David Simons Greatest TV programme ever madeÔ came to it’s conclusion and it’s left an unfulfilled gap in my viewing habits ever since. So it was with great expectations I went to see Maiween’s Polisse. The film is a portrait of life in the CPU (child protection unit) of the Paris police department. It interweaves the case work and personal lives of the men and women of the unit and the outsider perspective of Melissa (played by Maiwenn herself) a photographer commissioned to make a book about the work of these police officers.
It isn’t all miserabilist melodrama; the script has plenty…
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Polisse is a police procedural in the Paris Child Protection Unit, which as you can imagine contains some very harrowing and upsetting scenes.
What we see is how the team deal with suspects, investigate and let off some steam. Joey Starr is the main focus as Frank, one of the more emotional members of the team.
Hardgoing in places but worth the watch.
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Original pulse, quick-witted script, too cozy a sense of France’s racial cohesion combined with stereotyping of Romanians/Gypsies, wonderfully fleshed villains, great female friends in confrontation
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During a re-watch your mind is allowed to wander, to focus on the "how" over the "what", on the kind of detail that is often sidelined when the narrative requires your full attention. This is especially true of a movie as busy and lively as Polisse.
So tonight I was struck by the efficiency and elegance of the editing. This is a gritty film, shot with handheld cameras (but no shaky cam) in the style of Cinéma vérité. Maïwenn, who reportedly recorded over 120 hours of footage, whittles it down to a mere two here; no easy task, I'm sure. That the film's rhythms feel so natural, that it paces itself so skillfully, yet never loses that naturalistic energy, despite…
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This review reportedly contains spoilers. I can handle the truth.
Recent reviews
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The DVD cover promised me something like "a complete The Wire season compressed into 2 hours" and being a die hard fan of said tv show (and also a sucker that falls for easy marketing) I took it home with me.
Needless to say, it's not even remotely like The Wire. Imagine two hours of french people SHOUTING ANGRILY at each other, with plenty of melodrama disguised as "real life stuff filmed realistically" and you have Polisse. Not bad, but nothing to write home about either, the kind of movie you keep waiting to take off at any minute but never does.
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Deeply affecting. Perhaps a few too many faces are introduced, resulting in a slight bewilderment as to who's who, particularly in the first 30 minutes, but I was grippped and really took to a few of the characters.
The blurred boundaries between work and home that social workers must contend with is evident throughout, as is the all-consuming nature of the job. Hats off to anyone who's willing to give it a go.
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Terrific fictional analysis of the workings of a Parisian child protection unit that has drawn rather facile comparisons with The Wire and Spiral but digs just as deep as those excellent TV shows in a different way.
The informality of the police station (I'm still trying to get my head around the civil law procedures as depicted in Spiral) contrasts with some heavily emotional home lives and the often flabbergastingly depressing subject matter - paedophilia is to the fore in its many guises and the movie is a real wincefest at times.
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Police procedure film following the CPU(Child protection unit) in Paris, and what is fantastic about this film is the Structure and story, we follow the team, getting into their lives on and of the job, and the various case throughout this time, no major plot thread, no investigation into mr big, just case by case, see more of these lives then onto the next encounter, a few threads carry on or lead up to, but its always a fresh look at the job, we see how operations work, how arrests are made and interrogations at play. all charactors fully fleshed out and a glimpse into this world in great detail, the film also has a documentary feel at times and naturalistic acting adding to what we see, also on the job humour coming off fantastic and also the ugly politics and infighting. a wonderful suprise to see a few years after its release.
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Whenever anything is compared to The Wire my ears instantly prick up. It’s been 3 long years since David Simons Greatest TV programme ever madeÔ came to it’s conclusion and it’s left an unfulfilled gap in my viewing habits ever since. So it was with great expectations I went to see Maiween’s Polisse. The film is a portrait of life in the CPU (child protection unit) of the Paris police department. It interweaves the case work and personal lives of the men and women of the unit and the outsider perspective of Melissa (played by Maiwenn herself) a photographer commissioned to make a book about the work of these police officers.
It isn’t all miserabilist melodrama; the script has plenty…
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Forte e assustador!
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Outstanding, hyper-realistic examination of the lives of CPU (child protection unit) officers in Paris. For a film dealing with an uncomfortable subject it is at times uplifting and hilarious as the unit members seek refuge from the soul-destroying rigours of the day job. Which isn't to say its a laugh a minute, the abuses are laid bare and the fact that the cases portrayed are based on real-life crimes is sobering and saddening but this isn't the one-note, depressing movie that you might imagine from the subject matter.
One interesting device is the film's director, Maïwenn, playing a photojournalist following the team. For most of the film she's apart from the main cast, saying little and photographing their every move. It sounds a bit arty but its not - she's an integral character but brings to the part the aloofness that you imagine she needs as a director.
Clever, moving, brilliantly made film.
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This drama follows the lives of several members of a police Child Protection Unit in Paris. Supposedly based on real events, much of the film has the feel of authenticity although the central characters at the heart of the drama do not always ring true. A central problem is an unconvincing scene in which officers collapse in hysterical laughter whilst questioning a girl who has traded oral sex for a smartphone. The scene rings neither true nor funny because having got to know the characters by this stage, it is clear that this is not how they would really behave. The decision of the film's director to awkwardly insert herself into the drama as a photographer also doesn't bring great…
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Polisse is a movie which depicts perhaps the ugliest side of humanity. It is among the most powerful movies I have come across as it uses a documentary approach to bring a harrowing collection of stories to the fore. And it is due to the style and phenomenal cast that you have to question whether there is really any acting taking place here. From the adults to the kids, it’s simply off the charts!
The movie explores the Parisian Child Protection Unit’s personal challenges, departmental confrontations, and a multitude of disturbing cases. In fact, with all the shock value involving kids in the movie, you can be forgiven for losing track of what’s going on in the lives of the…