Storyline
Dheepan is a Tamil freedom fighter, a Tiger. In Sri Lanka, the Civil War is reaching its end, and defeat is near. Dheepan decides to flee, taking with him two strangers - a woman and a little girl - hoping that they will make it easier for him to claim asylum in Europe. Arriving in Paris, the 'family' moves from one temporary home to another until Dheepan finds work as the caretaker of a run-down housing block in the suburbs. He works to build a new life and a real home for his 'wife' and his 'daughter', but the daily violence he confronts quickly reopens his war wounds, and Dheepan is forced to reconnect with his warrior's instincts to protect the people he hopes will become his true family.
Cast: Jesuthasan Antonythasan -
Dheepan
Kalieaswari Srinivasan -
Yalini
Claudine Vinasithamby -
Illayaal
Vincent Rottiers -
Brahim
Faouzi Bensaïdi -
Monsieur Habib
Marc Zinga -
Youssouf
Bass Dhem -
Azziz
Franck Falise -
Le gardien du Hall C
Joséphine de Meaux -
La directrice de l'école
Jean-Baptiste Pouilloux -
Le juriste au foyer
Nathan Anthonypillai -
L'interprète
Vasanth Selvam -
Colonel Cheran
Kartik Krishnan -
Le faussaire au Sri Lanka
Rudhra -
La femme du camp de réfugié
Tassadit Mandi -
La dame dans l'escalier
Trivia:
Lead actor Jesuthasan Antonythasan was a boy soldier with the Tamil Tigers before fleeing Sri Lanka for France, just like the character he plays in the movie. See more »
Quotes:
User Review
Author:
Rating: 8/10
Although it must be a coincidence, the timing of this film's release is
pitch perfect. Just when thousands of Syrians are trying to escape
their warn-torn country, and some European politicians are complaining
about a 'swarm of migrants, trying to plunder the welfare state',
'Dheepan' shows what it is all about to be a refugee.
It is about desperation, about fear, about loneliness, about poverty,
about not being able to leave your past behind, no matter how hard you
try. And yes, it is also about deceit.
The refugees in 'Dheepan' have to lie to get away from the civil war in
Sri Lanka. They pretend to be a family of three, but in reality they
are neither husband and wife nor the parents of their child. This makes
their life in Europe even more complicated. The tensions between the
three of them come on top of the difficulties they already have
adapting to life in a new country.
The film shows how the title character, a former Tamil Tiger, gets a
job as a caretaker in a crime- and drugs-ridden apartment block in the
Paris suburbs. They have fled the violence of their own country, only
to be exposed to violence of a different kind. In the end, this turns
the peaceful caretaker Dheepan into a fierce fighter once again.
There has been some debate about the ending. It differs from the rest
of the film. The raw realism from Dheepan's life in the rundown
neighbourhood gives way to a more spectacular, adrenalin-fueled style.
Although it is quite a change, I thought it worked well. It gives the
film a sharp edge, particularly in contrast to the epilogue, which
offers food for thought in itself.
Audiard once again has made a very powerful film about strong
characters trying to survive in difficult situations. As in his other
films, his heroes are ordinary people, with character flaws and
weaknesses, who nevertheless show strong determination to get what they
want out of life. For a French director, it takes some guts to make a
film which is mostly spoken in the Tamil language. It's proof of his
original and individual approach to film making. As much praise as he
deserves, he couldn't have done it without the remarkable
accomplishment of his two lead characters, who show an incredible range
of emotions without a single moment of overacting.
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