A Prophet is a French prison/mob film that sucks you in from the first scene. Nominated for an Academy Award for Best Foreign Picture, I guarantee this movie will inspire you to recommend it to others... a) because it’s that good and b) because…it’s just that good.
Prophet is the story of the transformation of impoverished young Frenchman of Arab descent, Malik El Djebena (Tahar Rahim), and his Machiavellian rise to power within the prison system. Learning the ropes as he goes Malik is a quick study. From the Muslim gangs to the Corsican mob lead by César Luciani (Niels Arestrup), he constantly absorbs knowledge. Malik starts out nervous, illiterate and inarticulate but smart enough to take in everything around him. Serving as underling to the Corsican gang he also studies language and economics from Ryad (Adel Bencherif), an Arab with terminal cancer. Malik learns to smuggle drugs, play all sides of the fence, and to survive. For guaranteed protection he must also prove himself by murdering someone. This leads to an intense razor-blade-in-the-mouth scene with one of the hugest torrents of blood spurting in film history. His ongoing relationship with this “first kill” as a visiting phantom guides him through tough times, inspiring his visionary insight, hence the movie’s title. As he toughens up and achieves more of his goals, the end result is nothing we expect. But the intensity and the intellect of this film goes way beyond any stereotypical “behind bars” trappings. A Prophet is smart, superbly acted, and deftly filmed. 
The acting obtains absolute perfection. Arestrup commands the screen with true mob boss spirit, passive and friendly one minute, exploding into fits of cruel rage the next. His transformation from top dog to a thug whose days are numbered is devastating. Rahim is an actor who at first glance doesn’t seem all that special, but his portrayal of a gifted learner who can hide his thoughts, calculate his moves, and take courageous risks to get ahead proves nothing short of mezmorizing. Rahim’s performance is strong but not grandiose. You want to root for Malik, but his power playing keeps him mutating back and forth between loyalties so much that you that you get left in the lurch.
Steeped in plot intricacies close to that of Godfather II and The Sopranos, Prophet’s genius lies in exposing the fact that nothing is what it seems and it’s all right there in front of you. A Prophet derives as much power from surreal dream scenes as hard hitting realism. But what delves deeper is Audiard's minute deconstruction of socio-political power dynamics. This is Machiavelli's The Prince played out in prison –Malik never lies yet deftly gains power against others by using truth as his deceit. Audiard shows extreme attention to detail, from the distant echoing yells from faraway cells to the compelling theme music, handpicked blues and the ending credits’ Mack the knife by Jimmy Dale Gilmore. The height of the drama includes an extremely original, dazzling yet claustrophobic shoot out scene that can only be described as a blood-spattered bullet-riddled cocoon-like rebirth.
A Prophet is an epic, riveting drama examining a survivor at the purest level, with an almost spiritual transcendence nearing redemption. At two and a half hours, it was just getting started.
A Prophet
Starring: Tahar Rahim, Niels Arestrup,Adel Bencherif
Directed by Jacques Audiard
4 ½ stars
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