No. 96 (2022) KOMPROMAT Nov. 14th.

 

Film No. 96 (2022)  November 14th.  6.30 PM   Cinema 1.  LUNA,  Leederville.

 

"Listen to me. You'll be sentenced to ten to fifteen years in prison. Get out of here". (Mathieu is whispered these instructions as he is hugged by his lawyer). 

KOMPROMAT is not a great film. It is however a rollicking good yarn which will take two hours of your time in a manner similar to that in which thrill seeking cinephiles like to ingest their popcorn. And what is it about that Liam Neeson look? Gilles Lellouche (GOLIATH, FAREWELL MR HAUFFMAN), our falsely accused hero Mathieu Roussei, in look and story trope would surely gain Liam's stamp of approval.

From the opening caption "This story is based loosely on true events" we know that a grain of salt will need to be taken. The terms loosely and events say it all, yeah?

I'm sure there have been foreigners arrested and falsely accused of who knows what during this Putin regime in dark, dank Russia. Here our fictional Roussei is a French citizen living and working in Moscow. His home life is strained, but his love for his daughter is unquestionable. He's the instigator of an edgy dance performance, presented for locals, which sparks antagonism from the less broad-minded Russian authorities. His house is stormed and he is placed under arrest. Charges of paedophilia and child abuse are levelled at him. And so begins the rollicking ride to regain his freedom against all odds.

The need to leave rational thought at the candy bar is essential here. The unlikely love (or in this case infatuation) angle which helps to spice Matthieu's plight as he acquires his one great ally in Svetlana, (steamily played by Joanna Kulig) asks us to stretch our imaginations extraordinarily. But that's what you're there for. A rollicking good ride ... KOMPROMAT won't let you down. 8GUMS.