We need a wider range of stories out there, which celebrate the lives of people from disadvantaged backgrounds and aren’t sensationalised. It makes me question who is commissioning certain films, what the message they are trying to convey is and who are they trying to reach. You can see that the film intends to speak to the struggles of people who live in poverty, but in reality, it’s unlikely that many of those people will actually see the film. In regards to legacy, I’d say that a lot of the time it’s actually privileged people who work in film or the arts who are more familiar with La Haine. Classism is just so engrained into our culture and the film really shows how little the lives of certain people matter in the framework of this system, and how people’s realities and experiences can be completely nullified. The UK and France are similar in the sense that the media portrays a very constructed image of Paris and London of it being wealthy and glamorous, when in reality, there is a huge divide between the rich and the poor. La Haine captures the rawness and unpredictability of everyday life when you grow up in a similar environment to the characters. The fact these issues are replicated and still exist today aren’t coincidences but are instead the structures of oppression in motion. I feel like the societal ills that plague the film such as police brutality and a total lack of mobility are still stark reminders of the total dereliction of duty by the government. It’s also not a coincidence that foreign audiences, especially in New York and London, saw the truth of their own society and neighbourhoods reflected back at them. But despite working hard and finding something you love to do, there’s no guarantee that it won’t all go up in flames at any moment.ĭuring both the London riots of 2010 and the Black Lives Matter marches of 2020 the iconography and enduring imagery of La Haine were easily evoked. I like your incorporation of the eyes-shut scenes of Said and Hubert, which really represented to me the futile attempts of this teenagers in the projects to get away from the tragedy and violence that consumes them.
Hubert’s character also shows that even in bleak situations, you can find purpose through a passion or vocation and seek joy and meaning in that. leariej Apat 1:30 pm This is a great analysis of La Haine that covers all of the complex thematic elements of the movie. I find that La Haine reflects the hilarious oxymoron of living on a council estate and knowing you are estranged and isolated from the rest of the world, and yet still surveilled constantly by the police.