I really don't understand the movie
rating system especially when it comes to an R OR NC-17. In "A Prophet"
there is a lot of violence including one of the most horrendous murders I
have ever seen performed on screen. There is full frontal and rear
(pardon the pun) nudity not to mention soft, almost, hard core sex.
There is smoking, drinking, drugs, rough, crude language and almost
porno. So what makes a film NC-17?

Tahar Rahim plays Malik,
a 19 year old sentenced to prison for 6 years, after battery on a
policeman. After juvenile problems he has now 'graduated' to adult
status, with little education, just barely able to write and unable to
read. Caesar, played by Niels Arestrup, the leader of the
inmates and some of the guards, takes Malik under his wing and
uses him to kill another prisoner with the threat that if he doesn't do
it he will be killed. I won't go into too much detail, because as it is I
won't be sleeping too well tonight, he is taught how to cut a man's
throat with a razor in his mouth and then we see him do it.

We watch Malik learn how to read and
we watch his education as a criminal who is an errand boy for Caesar,
becomes a drug dealer, and eventually changes the whole hierarchy of the
prison, with his wheeling and dealing, which is shown in one stark
scene near the end.

There are
parallel stories regarding the Arab versus Corsicans in the prison
system and the French versus Muslim in France. The film is too brutal to
be softened by a story line regarding a friend, played by Adel Bencherif, 
of Malik's having testicular cancer and the man getting married and having a
child.

The film is the story of an
innocent going to prison and coming out a hardened criminal which really
isn't new in the history of films but is handled in a different manner
here. Tahar Rahim does give a strong performance as the young man but their is no
connection between him and the audience while Niels Arestrup,
as the 'mentor, commands the screen each time he is in a scene and
though a brutal man makes you feel for him as the end approaches.

With all due respect there are way too many
unnecessary 'artistic' shots that extends the picture to 2 hours and 29
minutes, about 30 minutes too long. The ending is ambiguous to the point
that Allen and I disagree to what happens after the fadeout. As to the
title of the picture that is also ambiguous though there is one sentence
that refers to Malik as a prophet and one
scene with deers that may also apply.

The film is in French with English
subtitles and, whether in French or English, the razor scene is
horrific. As it is in the beginning of the film it sort of distracted me
from the rest of the film and really stops me from recommending it
unless you like that sort of thing or you are prepared to keep your eyes
closed!

For the record A Prophet was
nominated for an Oscar as Best Forign Language film but didn't win.