Free Men Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		4.5
Video		4.5
Audio		5.0
Extras		2.5
Overall		4.0

Free Men Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov September 27, 2012

Screened at the Cannes Film Festival, Ismaël Ferroukhi's "Les hommes libres" a.k.a "Free Men" (2011) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Artificial Eye. The supplemental features on the disc include the film's original theatrical trailer, video interview with director Ismaël Ferroukhi, and a video interview with actor Tahar Rahim. In French and Arabic, with optional English subtitles for the main feature. Region-B "locked".

The snitch

Sometime during the German occupation of France. During a raid in a district of Paris where many illegal immigrants from Algeria and Morocco live, Younes (Tahar Rahim, A Prophet), a black marketer, is arrested by the French police. A high-ranking official then offers him a deal: become an informer and keep working the streets or refuse and lose your business. Younes decides to become an informer because he needs to save enough to help his cousin go back to the motherland.

Soon after, Younes begins spending time in a Parisian mosque. The authorities suspect that the mosque’s leader, Ben Ghabrit (Michael Lonsdale, Of Gods and Men), is behind the many fake identity documents - proving whether a person was born Muslim - that have started appearing around Paris. They want solid proof before they arrest Ben Ghabrit because he is a close friend of the King of Morocco and an enormously influential religious leader.

Around the same time, Younes also befriends Salim (Mahmud Shalaby, Jaffa), an Algerian singer with a beautiful voice. Salim is Jewish but poses as a Muslim. Excluding Ben Ghabrit and some relatives, no one else knows about Salim’s true identity. Younes and Salim begin spending time together and visit some of the city’s best night clubs.

Eventually, the Germans begin arresting the Jews and shipping them to camps outside of France. The Muslims, and anyone else that has a valid document proving non-Jewish ancestry, are left alone. Ben Ghabrit and his men issue as many certificates as they can and give them to Jewish families, but the demand is too big.

Realizing what is underway, Younes switches sides. Then he attempts to save his friend Salim, who does not want to hide and despises the idea of leaving the country. Younes also begins assisting his cousin, who has joined the Resistance.

Ismaël Ferroukhi’s Les hommes libres a.k.a Free Men tells a true story. During WW2, religious leader Ben Ghabrit and his men did indeed save many French Jews who would have undoubtedly been deported to German camps without the fake documents they were given. Ben Ghabrit, who was born and raised in Algeria, spent the majority of his life in France, where he died in 1954.

The events in the film are seen strictly through the eyes of Rahim’s character, a young man who undergoes a profound character transformation after he realizes that the Germans have started an extermination campaign. This transformation, however, is not marred by the preachy political statements that occasionally pop up in other similarly themed films.

The second part of the film also highlights a different theme. As the Muslims join the Resistance, many are convinced that victory would essentially guarantee the end of France’s occupation of Algeria. As history proves, however, they were bitterly disappointed. A whiff of this disappointment is felt during the finale.

The cast is terrific. Rahim and Shalaby are thoroughly convincing, while Lonsdale, a veteran actor whose aunt had met Ben Ghabrit and often spoken to him about his actions, is simply outstanding as the Muslim leader. Acclaimed Belgian actress Lubna Azabal (Incendies) also has a small role in the film.

Note: In 2011, Free Men was screened at the Cannes Film Festival.

Free Men Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in an aspect ratio of 2.35:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, Ismaël Ferroukhi's Free Men arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of British distributors Artificial Eye.

The presentation is wonderful. Detail is impressive from start to finish, while image depth rivals that of some of the best looking Blu-ray releases I've seen this year. The daylight sequences, in particular, look fantastic (see screencapture #2). Color reproduction also does not disappoint. Cinematographer Jérôme Alméras obviously had a preference for warm but well saturated colors that give the film a period look that is most appropriate. There are no traces of excessive sharpening corrections. Traces of serious purely transfer-specific anomalies are also nowhere to be seen. Compression is very good. To sum it all up, this recent film's transition to Blu-ray is easily one of the most impressive in Artificial Eye's impressive catalog. (Note: This is a Region-B "locked" Blu-ray disc. Therefore, you must have a native Region-B or Region-Free PS3 or SA in order to access its content).

Free Men Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There are two standard audio tracks on this Blu-ray disc: French DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 and French LPCM 2.0 (with portions of Arabic and German). For the record, Artificial Eye have provided optional English subtitles for the main feature. When turned on, they appear inside the image frame.

The film has a very atmospheric soundtrack that benefits tremendously from the lossless treatment. During the sequences where Salim is seen and heard singing as well as during the shootouts, dynamic movement is excellent. This isn't to imply that the sound is enormously intense, rather that there is terrific fluidity and vibrancy that sustain a sense of realism throughout the film, which one could successfully argue is amongst its best qualities. Additionally, the dialog is stable, clean, well balanced, and exceptionally easy to follow. The English translation is also very good.

Free Men Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Trailer - original theatrical trailer for Free Men. In French, with imposed English subtitles. (2 min, 1080p).

• Interview - in this video interview, director Ismael Ferroukhi explains what inspired him to shoot Free Men and discusses the film's important themes and message. In English, not subtitled. (12 min, 1080/50i).

• Interview - in this video interview, actor Tahar Rahim discusses his character, the story of the film, and the production process. In English, not subtitled. (6 min, 1080/50i).

Free Men Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Artificial Eye's output this year has been outstanding. The British distributors have brought to Blu-ray important classic films and some of the most talked about contemporary films that were screened at the biggest and most prestigious film festivals around the world. The latest addition to Artificial Eye's impressive catalog is Ismaël Ferroukhi's Free Men, a terrific period film recreating a true event - Muslims saving Jews during Germany's occupation of France. If you could play Region-B "locked" discs, I encourage you to pick up this film. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.