Netflix’s AKA Another Showcase for the Budding Action Star

Over the past few years, action fans have been treated to solid French programming runs on Netflix. Athena was one of best movies of 2022Julien Leclerc sentinel is a solid dark Olga Kurylenko thriller, ganglands (and the movie it was based on, breakers) are excellent crime fare, and lost bullet And its sequel even surpassed the Fast and Furious franchise in terms of explosive vehicular action.

The latest entry in this dabang scene is aka, a new Netflix pickup starring Alban Lenoir as Adam Franco, a highly skilled special-ops agent who faces one of his most dangerous assignments yet. Franco is put undercover on the security team of a notorious crime lord (notorious soccer legend Eric Cantona, a tough guy who was once suspended from the game). to kick a fan, Franco makes a big impression after quickly knocking the head of security unconscious after a verbal brawl, and he becomes bodyguard for the crime lord’s bully son, teaching the kid how to fight and defend himself. Is.

this is too much “Flame Man” Light” – another film that seems to have been inspired by Philip Nicholson’s 1980 novel flame man, aka There isn’t an official adaptation of the book like Elie Chouraki’s 1987 French film version or Tony Scott’s 2004 stylish thriller. But it has a lot in common with them: It’s a dark crime story about a clichéd operative bonding with a child, and the lengths the operative will go to when the child is in danger. Although it lacks the directorial talents of Scott, aka Has been in some other movies: Alban Lenoir.

Lenoir began his career as a stunt performer, working in a variety of French productions and on Pierre Morel’s 2008 game-changer. took, After a series of small parts, he got his big break in 2015. french bloodwhich screened at TIFF and earned Lenoir a Lumières Award nomination for Most Promising New Actor.

came a few years later lost bullet, a tightly contained vehicular thriller where Lenoir Lino, a master mechanic and thief is drawn into a scheme by crooked cops and framed for murder. To prove his innocence, he must find the last remaining evidence of the crime – a lost bullet.

lost bullet And lost bullet 2 are among best action movie using simple narratives to build up to elaborate, kinetic set pieces. Fistfights are brutal, car chases are lightning (sometimes really), and it’s a turbo-charged action series reminiscent of the early Fast & Furious movies.

But Lenoir is the secret sauce to the recipe for these movies. He always brings a cool, intense, grounded energy to his roles, a face that screams, “This guy’s been in a lot of fights.” Lenoir moves like an athlete and hits like a trucker, and when he plays highly competent characters skilled in violence, he infuses them with everyman energy. His characters get hurt a lot, and are often exhausted by the gruesome fights they end up in. akaThere’s a funny scene where Adam just wants to take a nap, but keeps getting interrupted with information and instructions from his handler (with whom he communicates via PlayStation voice chat, gamers).

Lenore is also a writer, and co-wrote the screenplays for both the Lost Bullet films and aka, aka He was hired by director and co-writer Morgan S. Dalibert, who is the cinematographer of the Lost Bullet films. (The two had previously worked together in 2005 as well. New WorldDalibert’s directorial debut.) Some action scenes stand out aka, notably an intricate brawl in a drug den and a fight outside a club shown via CCTV. Dalibert also frequently places the action behind long, narrow shots, adding depth to some scenes, and he takes delight in telegraphing objects that will be used in battle – hung on a hook on the wall to excite the audience. is how it will be deployed ruthlessly.

akaThe overarching narrative never really gets going – there’s a huge conspiracy theory floating around the edges of the movie, but it’s never really given enough time to come into focus. The pace of the film also slows as it pauses to give some of the characters more specific backstories, which is a shame, as the actors were already filling in a lot of the gaps through their performances. Thankfully, Lenore’s unique appearance helps the film garner solid streaming fare.

aka It’s at its best when it showcases Alban Lenoir, the action star, rather than his status as the less stylish man of flame, It’s still worth a look if you’re interested in the new wave of French action cinema and one of its most interesting stars. But if you haven’t seen the Lost Bullet movies yet, definitely make them a priority for the excellent Lenore action.

aka Now Streaming on Netflix.