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Film: Carlos The Jackal
Release date: 1st November 2010
Certificate: 15
Running time: 338 mins (‘trilogy’ version)
Director: Olivier Assayas
Starring: Juana Acosta, Edgar Ramirez, Alexander Scheer, Alejandro Arroyo, Ahmad Kaabour
Genre: Biography/Crime/Drama/History/Thriller
Studio: Optimum
Format: DVD & Blu-ray
Country: France/Germany
Carlos, real name Ilich Ramirez Sanchez, was so central in the history of international terrorism during the ‘70s and ‘80s that he became a minor celebrity – people feared and admired him in equal measure. His imposing personality enabled him to form his own organisation, one that famously raided the annual meeting of Opec oil ministers in 1975. With extensive cuts for its theatrical release (available on DVD as the ‘movie’ version), this ‘trilogy’ version is the original three-episode television series, tracing twenty years in the life of a notorious terrorist.
Ilich had grown tired of political demonstrations that, in his mind, did very little and didn’t mean a thing. Using more brutal methods to get his message across, it isn’t long before he changes his name to Carlos, an intimidating figure of the extreme left, and an opportunistic mercenary in the pay of powerful Middle Eastern secret services.
After a few successful (and some botched) operations, Carlos ultimately fails in an attempt to take hostage oil ministers attending the annual meeting of Opec, angering his employers who feel that he has betrayed them by taking money for freedom and not completing the mission.
Dumped for the next assault, Carlos soon realises he is no longer part of the group, but decides now is the time to set up his own organisation. Based in East Berlin, his romantic interests hinder his group’s progress, and creates conflict that could alter a certain comrade’s commitment to the revolution.
Inevitably, Carlos struggles to find the necessary support in order to keep his organisation going – colleagues are arrested and imprisoned, his partner is unable to raise their child by herself in such futile circumstances, his body is failing to cope with the physical demands his chosen path brings, and places to hide are becoming increasingly hard to find…
About two thirds of the way into Olivier Assavas’s biopic Carlos its intriguing plot veers dangerously close to running out of steam. Which is a bit of a nightmare seeing as we still have one episode to go – it’s longest, almost hitting the two-hour mark. Fortunately, after a meandering finale to end part two, the final instalment - and the director - gets back on track by juicing up the love triangle, promising conflict by the bucket load. Sadly, because the film is based on real events, interesting plot twists and the fascinating sub-plot are never explored, summing up why Carlos will never be fully appreciated – it’s just far too real, and so, ultimately, hard work.
Therefore, the resulting film is a strange beast. For instance, Assavas handles the visual aspect of the film with style, complimented by the performances – Acosta is astonishing, who gives his all to the role of Carlos, to the point where a weight gain during his spell in hiding adds simple but brilliant realism. There’s no question whatsoever about the state of his mind: he’s an arrogant man who wants to be remembered, maybe even admired, taking ludicrous measures to preserve his reputation.
The seamless fast-paced editing, mixed with a clever blending of black-and-white newsreels and footage, propels the action, of which there is plenty, into another realm altogether – so much so, the quieter moments are dull in comparison, even if they are seemingly required. A sparse punk soundtrack adds a bit of extra rebellion to proceedings, but it’s the simple use of gunfire that really gets the adrenalin pumping, especially during those frenetic hostage-taking scenes.
Jumping from country to country, from language to language, a lot of the dialogue is spoken in English, which certainly takes the pressure off this five-hour plus marathon. There’s humour here, too, whether it be Acosta’s neat one-liners, or the often-hilarious mistakes his comrades make (blowing up the wrong plane, twice, for instance), made the more amusing because it actually happened. Even better still, in the funniest moment, there’s always someone else who will take the credit for your mistakes.
The major problem with tracing twenty years of someone’s life is that, no matter how long the film is, it will still somehow feel rushed. Assavas doesn’t seem to have a problem with skipping a year or two when he sees fit, which ultimately leaves the viewer feeling a little bit lost and left out – surely something must’ve happened during such a length of time, and if not, why choose some scenes, for arguments sake the entire last hour, in which nothing much happens apart from running from one hiding place to another, in place of others that would show Carlos in a more fearsome light. At times, he does seem all too likeable, which is arguably why he was seen as such a celebrity, but also why the end result is somewhat disappointing.
Having said that, the opening three-and-a-bit hours hurtle by, with the first half of episode two a magnificent lesson in suspense and high-octane action. But once again, this brings its problems. History tells us that Carlos’s raid on the annual meeting of Opec oil ministers was his finest achievement, so what happens after that? Well, he ends up teaching, he struggles to raise a child, he decides to have liposuction, and his testicles are seriously giving him grief. Hardly worth another two hours, right? Maybe not…
Told in chronological order and with shifting levels of reality and fiction, the heart of Carlos is Juana Acosta’s outstanding performance, but the film is let down by the realities that finally befall the main man – simply, in this day and age, they just aren’t that interesting. DW
A myth in his own lifetime, Carlos is a central figure in the history of international terrorism in the 1970s and 1980s, from pro-Palestinian activism to the Japanese Red Army. He was at once both a figure of the extreme left and an opportunistic mercenary in the pay of powerful Middle Eastern secret services. He formed his own organization, based it behind the Iron Curtain and was active during the final years of the Cold War.
This film is the story of a revolutionary internationalist, both manipulator and manipulated, carried along by the currents of contemporary history and his own folly. We follow him to the end of his road, relegated to Sudan where the Islamic dictatorship, after having protected him, handed him over to French authorities. A contradictory character, as violent as the times he embodies, Carlos is also an enigma.
The writing and research took Olivier Assayas and Dan Franck around two years. Carlos plays out over some two decades across ten countries, with several dozen characters speaking many different languages. It is a political film, a period film, an action film, an international co-production and a film for television and cinema – a project that is exceptional in its scope.
Carlos The Jackal is being released as a ‘trilogy’ version, which features the three full-length episodes from the TV series, and as an edited ‘movie’ version, where the three episodes have been combined and over 90 minutes lost.
Film: Carlos The Jackal
Release date: 1st November 2010
Certificate: 15
Running time: 246 mins (338 mins – ‘trilogy’ version)
Director: Olivier Assayas
Starring: Juana Acosta, Edgar Ramirez, Alexander Scheer, Alejandro Arroyo, Ahmad Kaabour
Genre: Biography/Crime/Drama/History/Thriller
Studio: Optimum
Format: DVD & Blu-ray
Country: France/Germany
DVD Special Features:
•
Making of featurette
•
Interview with Edgar Ramirez
Additional Blu-ray Special Features:
•
Interview with Olivier Assayas
Film: Carlos
Release date: 22nd October 2010
Certificate: 15
Running time: 246 mins (338 mins – Trilogy version)
Director: Olivier Assayas
Starring: Juana Acosta, Edgar Ramirez, Alexander Scheer, Alejandro Arroyo, Ahmad Kaabour
Genre: Biography/Crime/Drama/History/Thriller
Studio: Optimum
Format: Cinema
Country: France/Germany
Originally a three-episode television mini-series, Carlos has been cut down to a slightly more digestible running time for its UK cinema release. The production is rather impressive in its scale, traversing two decades and various countries around the world, giving us a glimpse of this Venezuelan terrorist in candid fashion.
The film shows how Carlos rose to prominence in the 1970s in association with the Palestinian Front for the Liberation of Palestine. He became a notorious figure in international affairs and a kind of celebrity amongst terrorist groups. His most daring and elaborate of operations was the 1975 raid on the OPEC conference in Austria.
He possessed an attitude of such self-assurance that he acted and made decisions almost independently, causing friction between himself and those who led him.
As time passed in a life without pause, Carlos found it increasingly difficult to carry out his radical agenda with his militant methods, in a world where the political climate was gradually shifting…
At a hefty running length and executed with faultless craft and attention to period detail, Carlos is a film that earns your respect. Unfortunately, it is rather difficult to state whether Assayas’ film really provokes any other thoughts or responses from its audience once the two and a half hours have ceased. To not reach an audience on a level deeper than just distant admiration is regrettable, especially when viewers have followed the film through what has been a considerable journey.
This is not to say that the cinematic journey itself has been unremarkable, because to suggest that would be completely erroneous. Carlos is unquestionably absorbing. One of the key factors that contribute to the film being so engaging is the unflinching directorial style of Assayas. He moves his hand-held camera around with total authority, but without inhibition - giving us an exposing view of the life and actions of this international terrorist.
Some of the most outstanding sequences featured in Carlos are the scenes of violence. Here the director, in conjunction with his cinematographers Denis Lenoir and Yorick Le Saux, depicts several violent events that are astounding in their immediacy and power. What is noticeable in these scenes is the adherence to realism. In using this realism to establish the tone prior to the commencement of the use of physical force, the director only heightens the impact of the brutality on the audience watching. Assayas also demonstrates his technical brilliance elsewhere through his rapid pace of editing, in addition to other post-production techniques, such as the blending of black-and-white news archive footage into the subsequent scene in colour.
If there is any defining sequence or moment in Carlos that the film will most likely be remembered for, it is the siege of the OPEC conference in Vienna, 1975. Carlos’ objective in the operation was to assassinate the Saudi Arabian oil minister, thus removing the obstacle to ensuring elevated oil prices to benefit ally Saddam Hussein. Aside from the frantic pace of the carnage that takes place once Carlos and his team begin their hostile takeover, Assayas also conveys a genuine sense of menace and uncertainty in the process. The uncertainty for Carlos grows as the scene progresses, with his operation failing to run as planned, especially when his crew move the hostages onto the airplane.
The film reaches a peak at this point. There is little subsequently that has the same urgency or sense of purpose as this vibrant cluster of scenes. As the narrative proceeds to take us through the following decades, Carlos struggles to maintain his influence over international affairs, particularly due to the Cold War ending further into the film. While the historical and political backdrop of the film is very interesting, we do not learn much else about Carlos. It is not mandatory that Carlos explore and examine its central character, and weave a character study of the man behind his history. However, if the film elects not to do this then surely it should provide more in the way of drama to distinguish itself. This is particularly noticeable due to the fact that the thriller-esque elements of the film are much less prominent further into the film.
One of the highlights of Assayas’ film is Edgar Ramirez’s performance. A film of this kind needs a solid performance from its leading actor, and Ramirez more than satisfies the brief. His is a magnetic, dominating portrayal, infused with masculinity, dignity and passion.
Whether it is because, as a movie version, too much has been lost from the TV series it derives from, Carlos is not as fulfilling as one would hope. It does nearly everything correctly, but just doesn’t do enough to be truly great. BN
Interview courtesy of Optimum Releasing.
A rising star in Hollywood, Venezuelan actor Edgar Ramírez, 32, plays the international terrorist Ilich Ramírez Sánchez in this week’s new cinema release, Carlos...
How did you come to play Ilich Ramírez Sánchez, a.k.a. Carlos?I think Olivier Assayas had seen me in Domino by Tony Scott. He sent me the script of the film in Caracas and we met in Paris in August 2008. We talked about Carlos, international politics, history, the 1970s, and it became clear that we had to work together.
What attracted you to the project?
Above all, the opportunity to work with Olivier Assayas, because I’m a fan of his films, especially Clean.
Olivier's an extremely sensitive filmmaker and an astute observer of human nature. He can tell very simple stories with a rare depth. Any director could have turned Carlos into a vulgar stereotype: either an evil terrorist, or a romantic revolutionary. In reality, he’s a much more contradictory character. I knew in advance that Olivier Assayas’ Carlos would be anything but Manichean. Beyond the historical and political dimension of his story, he first and foremost imagined it from a human point of view.
Can you say that Carlos was human?
Humanizing a character doesn’t mean making him a humanist. Assayas unpicks the myth whilst taking account of all the light and shade: his cruelty, his charisma, his misogyny, his doubts, his seductiveness and his cupidity. He depicts Carlos as an extremely complex being who takes decisions that have terrible consequences, sometimes even to his own detriment. Essentially, his film deals with the choices a man makes and their repercussions on his life.
Was it complicated playing a character as ambiguous as Carlos?
I’ve always been drawn to characters that are hard to fathom, and who operate on the boundary of humanity. I like roles that allow me to question my own values, and to gain a better grasp of the paradoxes in human nature. I understood that I had to feel a minimum of empathy for Carlos if I wanted to represent the character as honestly as possible. Otherwise, I’d have turned him into a cliché.
Did you meet him in prison for the role?
That didn’t happen for legal and logistical reasons. But I approached some members of his family, his friends and former mistresses in order to gain a greater insight into his character. In parallel, I read up on him in history books and lots of archive material, before going into the screenplay with Olivier Assayas.
How did the shoot go for you?
It was very intense. We were filming for seven months between Britain, the Netherlands, France, Germany, Austria, Hungary and Lebanon. The weather conditions were, at times, very arduous, notably for the scenes filmed in the middle of the desert, or in the DC‐9 plane at Beirut airport in the middle of the summer and without air conditioning. The film is all the more realistic for that.
What are the most striking memories you have from the shoot?
In Lebanon, during a control at a checkpoint, I didn’t have my passport and I ended up in prison. Luckily for me, it only lasted for four hours. The film crew explained to the local authorities who I was and everything was straightened out. But, mostly, I remember it being a very rock’n’roll shoot, very lively.
Olivier Assayas is able to create such realistic atmospheres that you almost end up forgetting the fact that it’s fiction. During the scene of Carlos’ birthday in a Budapest hotel, for example, I was having so much fun that I got the impression that this party was being thrown in my honour and that the actors were my friends. As the months went by, we formed a real family.
Is it possible for an actor to emerge unscathed from playing such a character?
After the shoot, I underwent therapy for a month-and-a-half. Not because I identified excessively with Carlos, but I’d been through such a frenetic seven months that my emotional system had been somewhat altered by it. I need to evacuate all that energy from my body.
Like Carlos, your name is Ramírez, you are Venezuelan and a polyglot. Were these similarities an advantage for the role?
One way or another, that certainly helped me slip into Carlos’ skin. Our respective families come from San Cristóbal in Venezuela, and we have both lived in Caracas. My father was a military attaché and, like Carlos, I’ve travelled a lot. I’ve lived in Austria, Mexico, Canada, the United States and Colombia. As a result, I can speak five languages: Spanish, Italian, German, English and French. For the film, I also had to learn some Arabic phonetically.
How did you become an actor?
Alongside studying political communication at university in Caracas, I used to organise a short film festival. During a trip to Mexico, I met the screenwriter Guillermo Arriaga who’d seen me in a friend’s film, and who encouraged me to become an actor. At that point, I didn’t feel I had the time, because I was running an organization to promote the right to vote and free access to means of communication in Latin America.
In 1998, Arriaga offered me a role and I accepted it. My international career took off thanks to my performance in Domino by Tony Scott, and then I followed up with The Bourne Ultimatum by Paul Greengrass and Che by Steven Soderbergh.
Besides movies, your name is associated with many NGOs. Where does this commitment come from?
I was initially aiming to work in diplomacy, and I remain very concerned about human rights issues. Last year, I took part in a campaign by Amnesty International against firearms violence in Venezuela. I also represent a national charity for the fight against breast cancer, and I’m involved with Unicef activities in Latin America. Using my image as an actor to defend humanitarian causes allows me to pursue this vocation and not to lose sight of my convictions. OR
