Mesrine: Public Enemy Number One

Mesrine is back! This time focusing on the later years of real life French gangster Jacques Mesrine (Cassel), the second part of Jean-François Richet’s biopic picks up from where we left our anti-hero at the end of Mesrine: Killer Instinct. Whilst the first part charted the magnificent rise of a mastermind, Public Enemy Number One deals with his inevitable fall.

It’s the early 1970s and Mesrine is under pressure from tough cop Broussard (Gourmet). His life is an unbreakable cycle of crime-jail-escape, and it is during one of these suspenseful prison breaks that he acquires a new partner in crime in fellow inmate Besse (Amalric).

Cassel’s mesmerising central performance makes the film a must-see. In his highly skilled hands, Cassel prevents Mesrine from becoming mere caricature, and offers instead an intelligent and fascinating portrait of a character that is revealed to be essentially unknowable. He is depicted simultaneously as revolutionary figure and ruthless thug. He is handsome, charming, witty, and capable of great tenderness, yet these attributes are coupled with shockingly violent and brutal outbursts as he becomes increasingly reckless and self-obsessive. His quest for notoriety develops into a full blown addiction that he satisfies through a manipulation of the media. So Mesrine guarantees his status as public icon, but at what cost?

This is a hugely enjoyable gangster thriller in the same vein as the recent John Dillinger biopic Public Enemies. Stylish and entertaining, Mesrine: Public Enemy Number One is sure to keep you on the very edge of your seats!

Holly Cooper