La Haine

1995 • 93 minutes

About this movie

Inspired by cinematic classics including Mean Streets, Do the Right Thing and The Battle of Algiers, Mathieu Kassovitz's LA HAINE is arguably the most incendiary, provocative and prescient film to emerge from the '90s. Starkly shot in black and white to show a Paris not on any tourist map, the film deals with France's intolerance towards outsiders, following Vinz (Vincent Cassel, Irreversible, Ocean's 12, Mesrine: Killer Instinct), Hubert (the magnificent Hubert Koundé) and Saïd (Saïd Taghmaoui, Hideous Kinky, Three Kings), three young men trapped in the Parisian economic, ethnic and social underclass. Sensationally premiered at the 1995 Cannes Film Festival, LA HAINE saw Kassovitz rewarded with the Best Director prize and subsequently went on to win three Césars (including Best Film). Marked by its unapologetic brutality and vérité style, LA HAINE acted as a compelling wake up call to Europe.

Ratings and reviews

KEEPING IN LINE WITH THE THEME OF GRITTY URBAN LIFE IN THE POLITICAL COULDRON OF PARIS AND HER GERMAINE DISTRICTS THE POLICE ARE OUT IN FORCE AS THE COMMUNITY IS UP IN ARMS AFTER THE SHOOTING OF A TEENAGE 'GANG' MEMBER AND ONE OF OUR BOYS HAS THE GUN IN THIS HEATED UP STRAIGHT FROM THE KERB MOVIE IF YOU DONT MIND SUBTITLES AND YOU LIKE YOU RAP IN FRENCH YOU WILL LOVE THIS MOVIE LIKE TAXI TO ITS CORE AWESOME GRITTY ENTERTAINING EXCELLENCE. 5 OUT OF 5.

Paid for the film in HD, which was not HD and then got 3 minutes in and said this film has no licence, and now does not work on my pc or other devices

Amazingly thoughtful and incredibly powerful: A cult classic