2019 Cannes Critics’ Panel: Day 2 – Ladj Ly’s Les Misérables

An actor whose appeared in both of Romain Gavras’ outings as a director (he was one of the founding members of the collective Kourtrajmé best known for his short documentaries 365 Jours a Clichy-Montfermeil (2007) and Go Fast Connection (2008), this debut by Mali-born Ladj Ly stars returning players (from the short) in Damien Bonnard, Alexis Manenti and Djibril Zonga along with Jeanne Balibar in a tale set in and around Paris. After beginning in the docu form and sight unseen, a lot can already be said about a comp berth for a debut film (a rarity) in competition. Les Misérables is among a pair of comp entries that are based on a short film and this feature appears to have gone into production quickly after putting out the short in 2017 — but worth noting this man has been filming all his life — shooting not with a gun, but with any means necessary (flip phones et al).

A true grassroots type of project, the film is comprised of several non-actors and filmed in a location the filmmaker knows well. We’ve had a split vote among our jury members with some possibly claiming this as their best film of the festival, some middle of the road grades and some subpar notes. The film played this afternoon prior to the late 10:00p.m. screening of Bacurau. Here are the grades by at least half our jury.

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