22 Bullets

Charly Matteï, a retired mob enforcer, is pulled back into the brutal world he left behind after a long-time ally betrays him. Left for dead with 22 bullets lodged in his flesh, he miraculously survives and vows a personal reckoning. The film follows his deliberate, patient pursuit through the city's underbelly as he reconstructs the chain of betrayals piece by piece, not with flashy showmanship but cold calculation. Each confrontation reveals a fragment of his past and the fractured loyalties that still tether him to former friends. As the body count rises, Matteï weighs mercy against justice, testing the limits of what revenge can require from a man who once believed in loyalty above all, and a fragile balance shifts as secrets surface.

Directed by Richard Berry and released in 2010, the film presents an original screenplay from Alexandre de La Patellière, Matthieu Delaporte and Eric Assous. It positions itself as a kinetic French thrill ride rooted in classic gangster drama, for audiences around the world.

Critics appreciated the lean storytelling and Jean Reno's restrained, stoic portrayal of Matteï, which keeps the focus on motive and consequence rather than theatrical showdowns. The movie explores themes of loyalty and revenge, and questions how far one man will go to honor a personal code without turning into revenge.

22 Bullets sits within a wave of French crime thrillers that mix street grit with moral ambiguity. Jean Reno's performance added a no-nonsense antihero to contemporary French cinema, influencing later roles that blend quiet menace with hard earned pragmatism. The film's tone remains restrained, avoiding melodrama.

Box office totals for 22 Bullets are not specified here, but the film had a sizable theatrical run in France and international markets, reflecting the draw of Jean Reno and the notoriety of the genre across multiple territories worldwide.