Les Misérables

Stéphane arrives as a new recruit on the anti crime squad patrolling Montfermeil, a Paris suburb closely watched for its simmering street tensions. He joins two seasoned officers, Chris and Gwada, and quickly learns that the surface calm hides a volatile mix of local gangs, mistrust, and competing loyalties. An arrest turns chaotic, and when a drone captures the mayhem, everyone involved must confront what they really know about the people on the street and the consequences of their choices. The incident becomes a mirror for a neighborhood where surveillance feeds fear as much as it reveals truth, testing loyalties and judgment under pressure. The drone footage also tests the characters' limits and loyalties. This clash defines the film's pulse.

Released in 2019, the film is directed by Ladj Ly and uses an original screenplay co written with Giordano Gederlini and Alexis Manenti, expanding on Ly's sharp eye for Montfermeil and the tensions that pulse through its streets today now.

Worldwide box office totals 54,606,372 dollars on a modest budget of 2.5 million, signaling strong cross border appeal for a gritty social thriller rooted in contemporary urban life. Damien Bonnard and Alexis Manenti anchor the ensemble with taut, focused presence.

Many critics noted the film's documentary feel and its impact beyond cinema, sparking conversations about police tactics, surveillance, and racial tension in the suburbs. It sparked debates about accountability and the ethics of control, with the drone sequence becoming a reference point in discussions of modern policing for years ahead.

Reception highlighted the film's unflinching look at power dynamics and community fragility. Critics praised its tense pacing, social relevance, and Ladj Ly's directorial control, with performances from Damien Bonnard, Alexis Manenti and the ensemble driving a story about loyalty, justice, and the costs of violence, inviting reflection for viewers everywhere.