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      La Balance

      R 1982 1h 44m Crime Drama List
      Reviews 68% 250+ Ratings Audience Score The Paris police are desperate to bust drug kingpin Roger Massina (Maurice Ronet). To do it, they want pimp Dede Laffont (Philippe Léotard) to serve as their inside man. Dede refuses: Informants never live very long. But Detective Palouzi (Richard Berry) isn't taking no for an answer. Sure enough, the police put pressure on Nicole Danet (Nathalie Baye), the prostitute who's also Dede's girlfriend, forcing him to make a decision that could rob him of everything. Read More Read Less

      Critics Reviews

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      Gary Arnold Washington Post Unfolds with fairly dependable tension and excitement, but the lurid milieu and characters never concentrate our attention. Apr 30, 2018 Full Review Roger Ebert Chicago Sun-Times La Balance sees this Parisian underworld as clearly as any movie I can remember. Rated: 3.5/4 Oct 23, 2004 Full Review Cole Smithey ColeSmithey.com Natalie Baye is at her best in this cool French policier. Rated: 4/5 Aug 10, 2007 Full Review Emanuel Levy EmanuelLevy.Com Rated: 2/5 Jul 5, 2005 Full Review Read all reviews

      Audience Reviews

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      Audience Member Cops & robbers in Paris with intriguing characters & nice little touches the burned-out critics ignore of just plain fail to see. Rated 4 out of 5 stars 01/17/23 Full Review Audience Member I remember seeing this movie when it came out, very good crime thriller, la balance is french slang for snitch or 'grass' you'll love it if you speak french otherwise it's still great, like french connection in it's realism. Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars 02/10/23 Full Review Audience Member Tough ,Brutal and Brilliant just some of the words that sum up Bob Swaims La Balance a French cop thriller was american undercurrets. When a ruthless cop team loses one of its informers in a brutal shooting at the start of the film ,they have to find a replacement in order to nail brutal gang boss Massina. They pick Dede and his whore girlfriend as targets and what follows is a cat and mouse chase between cops ,Informers and gangsters alike . Philippe Leotard and Natalie Baye are excellnt as the couple trapped in the middle who cant run and have to face up to their predicament. Swaim (An American) gives the film a tough and lean edge which gives the film elements of Friedkin in his pomp ,the most notable sequence is a shoot out in a traffic jam which feels very very real. to combime a galic edge with an american slant is a tricky thing to do and Swaim pulls it off extremly well Rated 5 out of 5 stars 02/23/23 Full Review Audience Member Bonne intrigue, mais realisation plus que discrete : absente. Elle a au moins la qualite de ne pas etre mauvaise, puisqu'elle n'existe presque pas... Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 01/13/23 Full Review Audience Member grosse brochette d'acteurs + une Nathalie Baye au top ! Rated 4 out of 5 stars 01/26/23 Full Review Audience Member Michael Mann never said that he saw that movie. But it's obvious - "La Balance" two year before "Miami Vice"... Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars 02/04/23 Full Review Read all reviews Post a rating

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      La Balance

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      Movie Info

      Synopsis The Paris police are desperate to bust drug kingpin Roger Massina (Maurice Ronet). To do it, they want pimp Dede Laffont (Philippe Léotard) to serve as their inside man. Dede refuses: Informants never live very long. But Detective Palouzi (Richard Berry) isn't taking no for an answer. Sure enough, the police put pressure on Nicole Danet (Nathalie Baye), the prostitute who's also Dede's girlfriend, forcing him to make a decision that could rob him of everything.
      Director
      Bob Swaim
      Rating
      R
      Genre
      Crime, Drama
      Original Language
      English
      Release Date (DVD)
      Aug 10, 2005
      Runtime
      1h 44m