Matthieu Kassovitz, who made a big splash with his 1995 film La Haine, returns with a new film based on a real event that took place in 1988 in New Caledonia, France’s overseas territory in the Pacific. Gendarmerie chief Philippe Legorjus is sent with his men to Ouvéa to negotiate with Kanak separatists holding hostages. However, there is no ground for negotiation—the French army has already taken a combat stance. Time is running out, as elections are near and the mainland wants quick results.

This ever-intense uprising is both a gripping action film and a political drama. Kassovitz not only wrote and directed the film but also stars in the lead role. It portrays the separatists’ struggle for freedom alongside the politicians’ fight for power... A highly sensitive topic!

The result is a compact and realistic film—cinematically, politically and humanely.