A raw, almost documentary style film shot in gritty, black and white perfection. Bresson uses simple tactics to induce a strong claustrophobic feeling of being caged by shadowy foreign captors right along with the story’s hero Fontaine, subtly (and flawlessly) acted by non-actor François Leterrier. Leterrier’s calm voice-over and soft, almost constrained facial expressions only sweeten the realism of this “based on true events” movie that could have easily been crafted into an over-emotional cheese-mess.

You root for this man, completely absorbed in the unfolding of his plots & strategies…and admire him for his unwavering determination.

An excellent piece of work for those that study (& have a passion for) film and filmmaking.