Thehibikiew Not even bad in a good way

Marketic It's no definitive masterpiece but it's damn close.

Dynamixor The performances transcend the film's tropes, grounding it in characters that feel more complete than this subgenre often produces.

Grimossfer Clever and entertaining enough to recommend even to members of the 1%

Claudio Carvalho Chief Inspector Mattei (Daniel Auteuil) and his team identifies bank robbers In Paris. They keep the group under surveillance and when they heist a bank, they are ready to arrest the criminals. However, the sniper Vincent Kaminski (Mathieu Kassovitz) surprises the detectives and the gang escapes. Soon Mattei and his team arrest Vincent that does not accept to snitch his friends. When Vincent flees from the prison, Mattei hunts him down in a cat and mouse game and learns what happened to his son that died in Afghanistan. "La guetteur" is a French thriller with an excellent storyline and promising beginning with a fantastic shooting after the bank heist. The cast is also great, with Daniel Auteuil, Mathieu Kassovitz and even a cameo of Fanny Ardant. Unfortunately the screenplay has several pointless subplots and becomes a mess from the moment Mattei learns what happened to his son in Afghanistan to the disappointing conclusion with Mattei letting Vincent go without any reasonable explanation. My vote is six.Title (Brazil): "Atirador de Elite" ("Sniper")

roland-wirtz It had to happen: After watching many good french crime films, I found the first stinker. It's the worst kind of film, thinking it's smart when it's not. The lookout is just plain stupid. The plot has so many holes that it looks like swiss cheese. The film is totally unbalanced, trying to be many things at once: a cop film, a crime film about bank robbers, a serial killer film, a jail film and even a whodunit. The characters are weak and cliché. It sucks because the cast was good. I wonder why Daniel Auteuil made this awful film. He deserves better. I was misled by Auteuil and Placido (Romanzo Criminale is highly recommended). But why they turned this mockery of a script into a film is just beyond me. I hope the screenwriters didn't give up their day jobs.

jef-mead I'm being generous, I know, but consider the misleading 5.something score for this movie to be an anomaly. I first thought this was a 'Res Dogs' copy but it developed into a thoughtful thriller with enough plot to make it compelling. The absence of an obvious 'hero' figure is, perhaps, an obstacle to begin, but a strong ensemble cast contributes to maintaining interest in the conclusion of the movie. The question at the heart of the film, if there is one, may lie with the motivation of the Policeman, rather than the identity of the traitor. A genuinely classy European thriller of a type that can no longer be considered rare ( tell No-One, The Secrets...) but which is well worth a look.

GUENOT PHILIPPE I enjoyed this french action packed thriller. I would say it is a strange film, weird. Not because of the acting or directing, but because of the story itself. When the movie begins, you can't guess what's going to happen next. No way. There are many subplots and also sub characters. and some sequences seem have been let on the cutting room floor. Some lines sound strange; for instance, what the hell a character like Oilivier Gourmet's one - a sadist - would have done with the hoods who capture Mathieu Kassovitz, just before Francis Renaud saves him?It remains unexplained...Yes, I consider this is a weird film, but I like this. This is unusual. I love this kind of story lines.The ending is rather exciting but although predictable.I guess the director was influenced by Jean Pierre Melville, he picked Bourvil's character's name from LE CERCLE ROUGE - commissaire Matteï. Daniel Auteuil's character is interesting in his hopeless quest of vengeance.A bittersweet film that deserves to be watched.