Solemplex To me, this movie is perfection.

Lucybespro It is a performances centric movie

Donald Seymour This is one of the best movies I’ve seen in a very long time. You have to go and see this on the big screen.

Matylda Swan It is a whirlwind of delight --- attractive actors, stunning couture, spectacular sets and outrageous parties.

leonblackwood Review: For such a basic movie about a man, Gregori (Vincent Cassel) who builds his own territory for troubled women with children, and also lives with his wife Susanna (Florence Mezzara) and young son Alexander (Jeremy Chabriel), who is a trained cold blooded killer, it really did touch me. Alexander just wants do be a normal young boy, and he is curious about the outside world and the right and wrongs of life but his father has his own ideas for Alexander, and he tries to gear him towards the secluded life that he has built. After the strange disappearance of a young boy, who turns against Gregori, Alexander becomes weary of his father's intentions and he starts to question his life as an assassin, which doesn't go down to well with Gregori. His love for his mother and there new born baby, makes him take matters into his own hands, so he can better there life and get them away from the demanding and extremely unorthodox, Gregori. This is definitely an original concept, with some great acting from Cassel, Chabriel and the little boy who goes against Gregori. The whole trained assassin element, was a bit weird and the fact that they kept on getting away with it, wasn't very realistic but the rest of the storyline was great. Scenes like when Gregori's methods were questioned by the little boy, who was totally against killing the chicken, made this film a joy to watch and the transformation for Cassel, who really did look like he had the world on his shoulders, was also impressive. For a low budget, independent movie, that didn't get the biggest distribution campaign from the studio, I'm glad that I gave this movie a chance because I thoroughly enjoyed it. Great!Round-Up: French actor Vincent Cassel, 49, first impressed me in the movie La Haine in 1995, and he has gone on to make big budget movies like Joan of Arc, Shrek, Irreversible, Ocean's 12 & 13, Derailed, Eastern Promises, Mesrine, Black Swan, A Dangerous Method and Child 44. His next big movie, Jason Bourne alongside Matt Damon, proves that he definitely has the ability to star in big budget movies, while he still makes films for his native country but I personally think that he doesn't get the recognition that he deserves. Anyway, this movie was directed and written by Ariel Kleiman, 31, who has only made 5 shorts in his career. For his first major project, he certainly got the most out of the actors and the great script kept the movie interesting, from beginning to end. I recommend this movie to people who are into their thriller/dramas starring Vincent Cassel, Jeremy Chabriel, Florence Mezzara and Charlotte Miller. 7/10

jimbo-53-186511 Rather than use my own plot summary I think it would be easier to evaluate this film using IMDb's own plot summary which is as follows;"Alexander, a boy who has been raised in a sequestered commune, finds that his increasing unwillingness to fall in line puts him on a collision course with Gregori, the society's charismatic and domineering leader" Perhaps the problem for me with this film lay with my expectations of it and, given its premise, I expected a film that was about a brutal man and his tyrannical regime coupled with a young boy trying to overthrow his regime at every opportunity. Although there are certain moments in this film where both elements exist neither element is really given the focus required to make it a particularly good story or an involving experience. The film is supposed to be about Alexander trying to overthrow Gregori's regime, but examples of him trying to do this are few and far between and I also felt his reasons for wishing to do so were rather flimsy. It didn't really help that I never really saw Gregori as a tyrant either (I felt he was more misguided than anything) and this is another reason that I became drawn away from the film as the characters and their actions never really felt believable.Other more noticeable issues with the film lie with the pacing which is slow and tedious. There are long stretches of the film where nothing seems to happen making the film feel quite boring most of the time. I also felt that the film was unfocused and had no central narrative - Alexander flits between being an assassin and an objector with very little hanging these story arcs together. Although the film uses these 2 aspects to tell Alexander's story neither of the story arcs are developed particularly well making the whole film feel woefully and frustratingly undercooked.The only real positive about this film was Vincent Cassel who can almost make anything watchable and I also thought the kid who played Alexander did a solid job too. However, with weak material, unfocused plotting, and pretentious artsy direction Partisan was always destined to fail.

Tom Dooley Vincent Cassel stars in this Australian film as Gregori. He has a harem of women who all have children – mostly it would appear – with him as the father. They live in an isolated community where they seem to lead a happy life with the children learning yet enjoying their childhood. Gregori is the only man. His eldest son is Alexander and at first we see true paternal love and the reflected devotion.However, all is not as it seems as we learn that the outside world is not a nice place and Gregori is training his children to be 'hit men' or hit kids more appropriately. As Alexander learns more of the world forbidden to him he slowly starts to question what his father's motives are and their way of life.Now this is extremely well made being in part made by Animal Kingdom 'It Follows' fame. The actors all seem to be unknowns but all do brilliant jobs of what was a very physical film in terms of what is expected. Cassel is just as good in an English language role as he is in his native French and puts in a stellar performance. The plot was apparently inspired by child soldiers of Colombia. It is a very thoughtful film and despite the violent undertones is actually fairly responsible in avoiding the actual gore but still addressing the issues head on. It has had mixed reviews but I for one found that it stayed with me long after having seen it – which is always a good thing. This is for people who like to think about their films and who appreciate an original film delivered in a realistic way.

Tom Vykruta Partisan tells the story of a brilliant, highly determined man with a damaged past, Gregori (Vincent Cassel) who constructs a commune, assimilates a group of troubled women and trains and army of child soldiers. It is set in a protected compound, shielded from perceived evil of the people outside of the walls. The setting is a surreal fortress - part labyrinth, part garden of Eden.The story is told through the eyes of a brave, clever boy, Alexander, the son and product of Gregori. As a result of the boy's perspective, very little is told about the outside world - we learn only bits and pieces as Alexander is sent out on brutal but brief assassination missions. Gregori plays Father and God to the children of the commune, mentoring Alexander and the other children in various survival skills such as shooting and navigation. When the audience asked for more back story about the outside world, Ariel (director) said "we wanted to only show the world as seen through Alex's eyes, beyond that we didn't care."The film sets up with a hopeful Utopian society but turns quickly Noir as several twisted, internal conflicts develop and Alex starts to challenge his father's utilitarian command. The story-telling, cinematography and dialogue are chilling. Throughout the film many of the shots are as long as 25 seconds with no cuts.Fun fact - I spoke with Germaine after the film who told me in the first 2 days of filming he broke his ankle in an unfortunate camera dolly accident and had to endure rest of film in a cast.In post premiere Q&A Ariel said that the story was inspired by real child soldiers of Colombia.Prepare yourself for a visceral, emotional journey. Partisan is not just entertainment, it is profound art. I had the honor of seeing this film at the world premiere in the Library Theater at Sundance 2015 and meeting the cast and crew. It was my favorite of the festival.