THE CONQUEST EXPLAINS WHY NICOLAS SARKOZY BECAME FRANCE’S PRESIDENT
The world has been hearing more about French President Nicolas Sarkozy nowadays. He is the one behind the intervention in Libya, and he recently confided that he perceived Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as a “liar.” The Conquest (La conquête), directed by Xavier Durringer, begins with a disclaimer that the story, though based on actual events, is fictional. The screenwriter, in other words, guesses at what takes place behind the scenes, showing how Sarkozy (played by Denis Podalydès) may have risen to the top of the political class in France, while using background music that lightens what is serious, thereby coloring the president’s antics with a bit of wry French irony. Sarkozy is portrayed as having media savvy, clever ways of appealing to extremes on the left and right, and seeing through the perfidy of President Jacques Chirac (played by Bernard Le Coq) and his main presidential opponent, Dominique de Villepin (played by Samuel Labarthe). Sarkozy appears to have no strong political views except for the need to appear strong, plainspoken (that is, blunt), and effective. Much of the film treats his estrangement from his wife Cécilia (played by Florence Pernel), whose disaffection from him is never explained adequately. What is most fascinating is that Sarkozy campaigns on “change” in 2007, possibly providing a role model for Barack Obama. For filmviewers outside France (and perhaps inside as well), the film provides some insight into the country’s politics. For that reason alone, the Political Film Society has nominated The Conquest as best film exposé of 2011. MH
IS ELITE SQUAD 2 A PARADIGM FOR POLITICS EVERYWHERE BESIDES BRAZIL?
News stories emerging from Brazil nowadays mention that the police are cleaning up the slums (favelas) in preparation for the 2016 Olympic Games but are vague on details. Elite Squad 2: The Enemy Within (Tropa de Elite 2 – O Inimigo Agora É Outro), directed by José Padilha, starts with the disclaimer that the story is fictional, but nevertheless identifies the true scope of the problem, who and how the “cleaning” is being conducted, building on true events. Captain Nascimento (played by Wagner Moura) is the cop, clearly modeled on Serpico, who tries to stop the corruption of the police and the politicians who profit from the drug trade and avenges an attack on his son by the mob. Diogo Fraga (played by Irandhir Santos) is a human rights professor, who presents the skyrocketing of incarceration statistics to his class when Nascimento calls upon him to mediate in a prison riot to secure release of prison guards. Several themes emerge, from which filmviewers are supposed to conclude that crime fighting is heavily politicized: (1) Prisoners are able to kill one another because prison guards give them guns. (2) Police in the favelas extort money from druglords. (3) Druglords who fail to pay are killed by the police, events that are portrayed as victories in a supposed war on drugs. (4) Demagogic politicians, to get votes, rely on police to intimidate police and voters in the favelas with violence. (5) Corrupt police extend their protection racket to anyone who makes money in the favelas, not just druglords. (6) The media are under threat, as journalists will be assassinated if they tell the truth. (7) Paramilitary units are unable to stop the corruption but can inflict massacres. Because the film explains what is perhaps going on in Río de Janeiro, even if characters and conversations are fictionalized, the Political Film Society has nominated Elite Squad 2 for awards in all four categories–best film exposé, best film on human rights, and best film arguing for the need for real democracy as well as nonviolent methods of conflict resolution. MH