Dheepan

R

Released May 6, 2016

1 hr. 54 min.

Drama

TRAILER

for Dheepan: Trailer 1

List

87%

132 Reviews

Tomatometer

82%

2,500+ Ratings

Audience Score

Three Sri Lankan refugees (Jesuthasan Antonythasan, Kalieaswari Srinivasan, Claudine Vinasithamby) pretend to be a family as they try to make better lives for themselves in a Parisian housing project.

Read More

Read Less

Watch on Fandango at Home

Premiered Jul 27

Buy Now

Fandango at Home

Prime Video

Apple TV

Rent Dheepan on Fandango at Home, Prime Video, Apple TV, or buy it on Fandango at Home, Prime Video, Apple TV.

Critics Consensus

Dheepan offers a timely, powerful look at the modern immigrant experience in Europe.

Read Critics Reviews

Leaburn O

This film is extremely good 👍🏼

Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars

03/31/23

Full Review

Dave S

When three strangers, a man, woman and child, are thrust together to create a makeshift family to escape the Sri Lankan civil war, they find themselves in a new land with new challenges. The three Tamils, free of Sinhalese aggression, find themselves trying to adapt to life in France, struggling with language, culture, and the drug wars that rage in their community. Dheepan is a tough and gritty film about the refugee experience, filled with subtle but powerful insights into adaptation and assimilation, featuring strong performances from the three lead actors and a vibe that feels real. Unfortunately, the narrative structure shifts dramatically over the last half hour and the film morphs from an intimate family drama into a violent action movie, most of which feels disingenuous.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

10/28/23

Full Review

Audience Member

Almost good until last 10 minutes which is a bit too cinematic plot. The film suddenly changes from drama to action where the protagonist becomes a surreal hero. Not realistic.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

02/01/23

Full Review

Audience Member

The acting was pretty good and the concept was compelling. However, the plot was very disjointed, it was hard to connect to the characters and tbh the cinematography was trash. I wish audiard didn't release it cuz the story seems pretty tone deaf. anyways, overall I would never recommend this movie cuz there are better stories out there.

Rated 0.5 out of 5 stars

02/26/23

Full Review

Audience Member

Beautiful to watch, heartbreaking to see.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

09/03/19

Full Review

Audience Member

Richard Stanton 28 November at 10:07 Â· At the end of the civil war in Sri Lanka, a Tamil fighter poses as a father and husband to 2 refugees he does not know with the intention of escaping and starting a new life in France. What follows is a story of survival as this newly formed family struggle to find work, adapt to their fake family life, learn the language and fit in to what turns out to be a crime ridden and pretty grim district of Paris. It was a well acted film and a brutally honest depiction of what life is like for refugees struggling to find a new home. Some have criticised the ending of the film as unrealistic as the family find themselves caught up in the violence of the neighbourhood in which they live but considering the soldier's background I don't think it would unrealistic to believe he would want to protect what he had built in his new home.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

01/20/23

Full Review

Read all reviews

Post a rating

Jacques Audiard

Director

Jesuthasan Antonythasan

Dheepan

Kalieaswari Srinivasan

Yalini

Claudine Vinasithamby

Illayaal

Vincent Rottiers

Brahim

Marc Zinga

Youssouf

Show Less Cast & Crew

Show More Cast & Crew

92%

85%

I, Daniel Blake

TRAILER

for I, Daniel Blake

95%

83%

Loveless

60%

35%

Chocolate City

8%

34%

The Last Face

TRAILER

for The Last Face

51%

36%

Half of a Yellow Sun

Discover more movies and TV shows.

View More

On DVD This Week: Get Out, Logan, and More

BAFTA 2017 Winners Announced

BAFTA 2017 Nominations Announced

Dheepan: Trailer 1

2:06

View more videos

View more photos

Tara Brady

Irish Times

Engaging enough for the duration but muddled and ill-conceived.

Rated: 3/5

Aug 8, 2016

Full Review

Marjorie Baumgarten

Austin Chronicle

The nonprofessional actors deliver stirring performances and Audiard never sentimentalizes the characters' situation. And despite the film's misguided climax, Audiard again demonstrates that he is one of the top filmmakers working today.

Rated: 3.5/5

Jun 23, 2016

Full Review

Adam Graham

Detroit News

The film simmers and builds until it boils over in an explosive climax. And it shows how far people will go just to be able to cling to some semblance of hope.

Rated: A-

Jun 17, 2016

Full Review

Jaime Grijalba

Vague Visages

Audiard decides to have an action climax ala The Terminator rather than something more in line with the film as a whole. Unfortunately, once the climax ends, we are given one of the most beautifully-shot bad endings in the history of cinema.

Dec 4, 2023

Full Review

Juan Pablo Russo

EscribiendoCine

A fascinating film that never judges its characters, including the duller ones that are just the product of the space they exist in. [Full review in Spanish]

Rated: 6/10

Sep 2, 2022

Full Review

Jane Freebury

The Canberra Times (Australia)

Never one to shy away from controversial themes, Audiard here explores the predicament of a former Tamil fighter rebuilding his life in France.

Aug 22, 2022

Full Review

Read all reviews

Synopsis

Three Sri Lankan refugees (Jesuthasan Antonythasan, Kalieaswari Srinivasan, Claudine Vinasithamby) pretend to be a family as they try to make better lives for themselves in a Parisian housing project.

Director: Jacques Audiard
Executive Producer: Martine Cassinelli
Screenwriter: Noé Debré, Thomas Bidegain, Jacques Audiard
Distributor: IFC Films
Production Co: Why Not Productions, France 2 Cinema, Page 114
Rating: R (Language|Brief Sexuality/Nudity|Violence)
Genre: Drama
Original Language: Tamil
Release Date (Theaters): May 6, 2016, Limited
Release Date (Streaming): Nov 30, 2016
Box Office (Gross USA): $247.6K
Sound Mix: Dolby Digital
Aspect Ratio: Scope (2.35:1)

Most Popular at Home Now