The film will be introduced by Klaas de Zwaan.
La haine
Abdel Ichacha, a boy of Arab descent from a suburb near Paris, is seriously injured when he is brutally arrested by the police and ends up in hospital. This incident leads to violent riots, during which a police officer loses his service weapon. The gun is found by Vinz, an aggressive Jewish boy who is friends with Abdel. He swears that if Abdel does not survive, he will use the gun to shoot a police officer. His friend Hubert, an Afro-French boxer, thinks it is a bad plan, while Saïd, a North African Muslim who is friends with both of them, plays a mediating role between Vinz and Hubert. In the 24 hours that follow, tensions rise considerably.
This razor-sharp analysis of social injustice and the omnipresent hatred in the French banlieues, shot in black and white, marked the breakthrough for director Matthieu Kassovitz; the film was showered with praise and won many film awards. The same was true for actor Vincent Cassel with his portrayal of Vinz.
Klaas de Zwaan is Assistant Professor, Faculty of Social Sciences and Humanities, Art and Culture.
