THRILLER (France, 1h41), by Juan Carlos Medina,
with Sami Bouajila, Julie Gayet, Anne Azoulay
The rating of “La Provence”: 1/5
History
Northern France, 2005: Malik (Sami Bouajila), police inspector, helplessly witnesses the death of a child following a kidnapping. In charge of the investigation, he fails to find the murderer. Ten years later, with no new information, no trace of a dangerous criminal still at large, the case is about to be closed definitively.
But when new facts come to light, Malik begins a race against time in hopes of solving the investigation before the statute of limitations expires. In six days. That’s the time he has left to find the culprit…
Our opinion
Thriller made in France directed by an American, Six days has the particularity of relying on a solid and quite unexpected casting since we find in the skin of a bruised mother, Julie Gayet, whose presence is increasingly rare on the screens. A woman on the verge of madness as the investigation into the kidnapping and death of her daughter, which occurred years earlier, is about to be closed. Since then, she has harassed the police officer in charge of operations, whom she holds partly responsible for the failure of the mission to resolve the investigation in time.
In the first part, these two temperamental characters team up in a race against time that seems doomed in advance. The production lacks the nervousness to impose real tension. Although Juan Carlos Medina tries to create a dull, rainy atmosphere, looking towards Seventhe suspense is more than bearable. For his part, in the title role, Sami Bouajila, with a marked face, plays a relentless cop, obsessed with his investigation. To the point that his Malik quickly falls into gender stereotypes.
The second part of this thriller takes a radical turn by focusing on a new disappearance. A second plot which will turn out to be linked, and more than one might think at first glance, to the main one. The problem being that the film brings these two stories together with the sole aim of trying to surprise during the final twist, which is totally improbable.
Unconvincing in his dialogues and too crude in his approach, Six days however, poses an essential question: how far can we go to obtain the truth? And how to recover from the death of your child, if that is even possible…
