This French film, directed by Richard Angers, follows the story of two brothers and a man – Adrien – (Marc Messier) who unintentionally becomes a part of their journey. Adrien drove by as the older brother, Ced (Emile Schneider), was in a fight with a gang member. It appears that he hit him with a metal bar, but we later discover that it was the younger brother, William (Lenni – Kim Lalande), in an act of defence for his brother. As he was a witness of the attack, Ced forced him to drive them away from the scene as the police were after him. But he didn’t let him go after that, and they continued fleeing further away from reality.
The film mainly involved and focused on these three people, which was effective in allowing their characters to be developed and the relationships between them to be explored. A scene in which Ced left the others to get gas for the car gave them the opportunity to open up to each other. It is clear that the brothers are very close, and William shares his fears about Ced leaving their foster family now that he has turned 18.
“William sees Adrien almost as a father figure”
William reveals that his parents died in a car crash, which encouraged Adrien to share that his son also passed away. It seems that William sees Adrien almost as a father figure. Although his brother constantly threatens Adrien and claims that he is only using him to protect himself, it is evident that William does not want to hurt him. He even asks him to take him fishing, which seems strange under the circumstances that they are in.
There are some particularly emotional parts, which is good for me as I love emotional films! There is a fair amount of exposure to violence and guns, which often had the audience jumping with surprise.
In one scene, Ced starts fighting with his brother and William is crying out in pain. Lalande’s acting must be praised, as I could really see his discomfort. This was heart-breaking as it is clear his situation cannot be avoided, and although Ced cares about him he does not know what is best for him. I also felt bad for Adrien, especially when he made a sacrifice towards the end, as he had not done anything to deserve such treatment.
“An excellent film”
Verdict – ‘A Pact Among Angels’ is an excellent film, successfully directed to explore the three characters as the situation forced their true selves to come out. It was a bit confusing at times; I was unsure why Adrien stayed to help the boys even though they gave him a chance to leave. However, this just shows how different people behave under difficult circumstances.
Rating – 8/10
Emily Patel
Image courtesy of Nottingham International Film Festival
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