A Prophet

A Prophet is a French movie starring Tahir Rahim as Malik El Djebena, a nineteen year-old man whose been sentenced to six years in prison for assaulting a police officer. It's clear from the beginning of the movie that Malik has no family or friends in or out of prison. Once inside the prison, Malik is recruited by the Corisican boss, Cesar Luciani, to kill another prisoner that is scheduled to testify against the Corsican crime ring. Once Malik does Cesar's bidding, he is awarded Cesar's protection. The movie focuses on Malik and his relationships with the Corsicans and Arabs in the prison. In the end, Malik must decide with whom his loyalties lies.

This movie is on the top of my gangster movie list. Along the lines of Scarface, Goodfellas, The Godfather, and Casino this movie shows the inner workings of mob life. Even though the movie takes place in a prison, it is clear that the Corsicans run the prison because of their mob connections. They are allowed to attack anyone they want, eat better food, have better clothes, work desirable jobs, and enjoy privileges that the other inmates can only dream of.

The cast of the movie does a tremendous job. Tahir Rahim is a very talented actor who is able to portray the transformation of Malik right in front of the viewers' eyes. Niels Arestrop is also compelling as Luciani. The rest of the cast play their roles to perfection.

I would highly recommend this movie, especially for those of you who love gangster movies. I liked the fact that the movie was in French, I think it added to the movie's rawness. The story and the acting are all superb. A Prophet

OSCAR PICKS

Best Picture

'Avatar'
'The Blind Side'
'District 9'
'An Education'
'The Hurt Locker'
'Inglourious Basterds'
'Precious'
'A Serious Man'
'Up'
'Up in the Air'

*Who will win: Avatar
*Who should win: The Hurt Locker

Best Director

Kathryn Bigelow
'The Hurt Locker'

James Cameron
'Avatar'

Lee Daniels
'Precious'

Jason Reitman
'Up in the Air'

Quentin Tarantino
'Inglourious Basterds'

*Who will win: Avatar
*Who should win: Avatar

Best Actor

Jeff Bridges
'Crazy Heart'

George Clooney
'Up in the Air'

Colin Firth
'A Single Man'

Morgan Freeman
'Invictus'

Jeremy Renner
'The Hurt Locker'

*Who will win: Jeff Bridges
*Who should win: Jeff Bridges

Best Actress

Sandra Bullock
'The Blind Side'

Helen Mirren
'The Last Station'

Carey Mulligan
'An Education'

Gabourey Sidibe
'Precious'

Meryl Streep
'Julie & Julia'

*Who will win: Sandra Bullock
*Who should win: Gabourney Sidibe

Best Supporting Actor

Matt Damon
'Invictus'

Woody Harrelson
'The Messenger'

Christopher Plummer
'The Last Station'

Stanley Tucci
'The Lovely Bones'

Christoph Waltz
'Inglourious Basterds'

*Who will win: Christoph Waltz
*Who should win: Christoph Waltz

Best Supporting Actress

Penelope Cruz
'Nine'

Vera Farmiga
'Up in the Air'

Maggie Gyllenhaal
'Crazy Heart'

Anna Kendrick
'Up in the Air'

Mo'nique
'Precious'

*Who will win: Mo'nique
*Who should win: Mo'nique

Best Animated Feature Film

'Coraline'
'Fantastic Mr. Fox'
'The Princess and the Frog'
'The Secret of Kells'
'Up'

*Who will win: Up
*Who should win: Up

Best Original Screenplay

Mark Boal
'The Hurt Locker'

Quentin Tarantino
'Inglourious Basterds'

Alessandro Camon and Oren Moverman
'The Messenger'

Joel Coen and Ethan Coen
'A Serious Man'

Peter Docter, Bob Peterson, Tom McCarthy
'Up'

*Who will win: The Hurt Locker
*Who should win: The Hurt Locker

Best Adapted Screenplay

District 9
An Education
In the Loop
Precious
Up in the Air

*Who will win: Up in the Air
*Who should win: Precious