This is the original film from which the 2010 remake 'The Next Three Days' starring Russell Crowe was taken. Having seen both films I think I prefer this original French version. Why? Well, it's not as glossy nor quite as silly. Yes, both films are silly because the underlying supposition is that a man-in-the-street (in this case, a teacher) can break his wife out of prison and escape to foreign lands. Clearly, it's all a drama – but the Russell Crowe version has him buying a gun, learning to use a 'bump' key, opening car doors with a half tennis ball, outwitting the police – and generally playing Russell Crowe. The story in both versions is almost identical and many of the scenes are the same – but the emphasis is quite different. Here, the action is more understated and the emphasis is on the love and affection between the unjustly imprisoned wife and her husband and the prison-break story is more straightforward, has less trickery and is less centre stage than the Hollywood variant. Worth watching – I enjoyed it – and it's certainly worth 3/5 stars. For the record, I gave the silly US remake 2/5 stars.
Pretty daft thriller about an attempt to extricate an innocent wife from prison. Almost every plot device is ridiculous. I liked the main mans relationship with his parents and lovable son but that’s about it. Mind you it’s not boring.
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