Karmapolice

2023 film by Julien Paolini

Manolis Mavropoulos
Julien Paolini
Syrus Shahidi

Produced by

Marie Etchegoyen
Syrus Shahidi
Yann Girard
Julien Paolini

Starring

Syrus Shahidi
Alexis Manenti
Karidja Touré
Foëd Amara
Steve Tientcheu
Hortense Ardalan
Sabrina Ouazani

CinematographyHadrien VedelEdited by

Gwen Ghelid
Clémence Samson

Music by

datA
Pasquale Filastò

Production
companies

La Réserve
Cousines et Dépendances
Charly's Films
Dinosaures
Sugar Mama Productions
S'Imagine Films

Distributed byDHR Distribution / À Vif Cinémas

Release dates

21 October 2023 (2023-10-21) (Festival Polar de Cognac)
17 July 2024 (2024-07-17) (France)

Running time

80 minutesCountryFranceLanguageFrench

Karmapolice is a 2023 French neo-noir crime thriller film directed by Julien Paolini. His second feature film, Karmapolice was written by Paolini in collaboration with Manolis Mavropoulos and Syrus Shahidi.^[1] It stars Shahidi as a troubled cop who investigates his mysterious neighbour. Alexis Manenti and Karidja Touré appear in supporting roles.^[2] It premiered on 21 October 2023 at the Festival Polar de Cognac, before being theatrically released in France on 17 July 2024.

Plot

Angelo is a idealistic policeman consumed by guilt after he accidentally caused the death of a woman he was trying to help. He is put on sick leave and moves with his girlfriend to the working-class Château Rouge neighbourhood of Paris. There, he befriends a knowledgeable local named Poulet. He becomes concerned about a woman who lives across the hall named Elena, a drug addict who is allegedly under the influence of the neighbourhood's slumlord and crack dealer Anselme. Angelo involves himself in Poulet's activities and starts his own undercover investigation.

Cast

Syrus Shahidi as Angelo
Alexis Manenti as Poulet
Karidja Touré as Pauline
Foëd Amara as Kemar
Steve Tientcheu as Anselme
Hortense Ardalan as Elena
Sabrina Ouazani as Maman
Thomas Blumenthal as le voleur
Yaniss Lespert as un collègue
Yaya Bathily as un collègue
Zacharie Chasseriaud as l'agent immobilier
Lauréna Thellier as la victime

Production

Paolini drew inspiration from French comics, including those by Charles Burns, Lewis Trondheim, Joann Sfar and Emmanuel Larcenet.^[3]

Release

Karmapolice was presented in competition at the Festival Polar de Cognac, where it had its world premiere on 21 October 2023 and earned Paolini his second Grand Prix.^[4]^[5] The film was theatrically released in France on 17 July 2024, distributed by DHR.^[6]

Reception

On AlloCiné, the film received an average rating of 3.0 out of 5 stars, based on 12 reviews from French critics.^[7] Critics praised Karmapolice,^[8]^[9]^[10]^[11] and saw it as "the legacy of a certain New York underground cinema, from early Scorsese to the Safdie brothers, via Lynch's Blue Velvet".^[12] Cineuropa wrote that Paolini confirmed his "singularity" as a director.^[13]

References

^ Lemercier, Fabien (1 April 2022). "Julien Paolini's Karmapolice enters into post-production". Cineuropa (in French). Retrieved 13 June 2024.
^ "FESTIVAL POLAR DE COGNAC". www.festival-polar-cognac.fr. Retrieved 13 June 2024.
^ "Karmapolice Dossier de presse" (PDF). Unifrance. Retrieved 13 June 2024.
^ "Programme". Festival Polar de Cognac. Retrieved 26 August 2024.
^ "Polar le festival Cognac : les six « Grands Prix » dévoilés". Charente Libre (in French). 22 October 2023. Retrieved 13 June 2024.
^ "Les distributeurs peaufinent leurs line-ups". Boxoffice Pro (in French). 26 February 2024. Retrieved 13 June 2024.
^ "Critiques Presse pour le film Karmapolice". AlloCiné (in French). Retrieved 26 August 2024.
^ "Karmapolice - Julien Paolini - critique". Avoir Alire - aVoir-aLire.com (in French). Retrieved 26 August 2024.
^ ""Karmapolice", de Julien Paolini : notre critique". www.telerama.fr (in French). 16 July 2024. Retrieved 26 August 2024.
^ "« Karmapolice » : un thriller labyrinthique et envoûtant dans les rues de la Goutte-d'Or". Le Nouvel Obs (in French). 16 July 2024. Retrieved 26 August 2024.
^ "Julien Paolini – « Karmapolice »". Culturopoing (in French). 8 July 2024. Retrieved 3 August 2024.
^ Villard, Violette (28 November 2023). "Karmapolice de Julien Paolini : Angelo perdu in the red castle". LeMagduCine (in French). Retrieved 3 August 2024.
^ "Critique : Karmapolice". Cineuropa (in French). 15 July 2024. Retrieved 3 August 2024.