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The Measure of a Man

Play trailer Poster for The Measure of a Man Released Apr 15, 2016 1h 33m Drama Play Trailer Watchlist
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92% Tomatometer 64 Reviews 60% Popcornmeter 500+ Ratings
At the age of 51, Thierry starts a new job that soon brings him face to face with a moral dilemma.
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The Measure of a Man

The Measure of a Man

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Critics Consensus

With The Measure of a Man, director/co-writer Stéphane Brizé uses one man's heartrending story as a beautifully acted microcosm for life in the 21st-century global economy.

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Critics Reviews

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Alexandra Heller-Nicholas The Blue Lenses In scene after scene, Brizé exposes with an unrelenting focus the incessant scrutiny that those living in poverty like Thierry are placed under by those in positions of power above him. Aug 25, 2018 Full Review Moira MacDonald Seattle Times Stéphane Brizé's "The Measure of a Man" feels so real, you're almost startled when it's over - it seems as if this French drama about a middle-aged husband and father facing unemployment should just go on, as life tends to do. Rated: 3/4 Jul 21, 2016 Full Review Paul Byrnes Sydney Morning Herald No question, it is a fine performance. Lindon has a minimalist style, a shaggy dog look, and a barely suppressed working-stiff rage that gives the film some grit. Rated: 3/5 Jun 29, 2016 Full Review Farah Cheded A Good Movie To Watch So many scenes and conversations here are palpably laden with the anxieties of real life, both economic and personal. And yet, for all the dehumanization and desperation clouding its edges, Measure of a Man isn’t a hopeless movie. Nov 18, 2023 Full Review Mattie Lucas From the Front Row Presents us with an unassuming but surprisingly sharp moral quandary, a nagging question of honor that's hard to shake. Rated: 3/4 Jun 5, 2019 Full Review Ellena Zellhuber-McMillan One Room With A View A tough, melancholic watch with little to no payoff. But in that way it effectively communicates how it feels to be the main character. Rated: 4/5 Apr 22, 2019 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

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Nawt W Ironically, it takes too long for the movie to give Vincent Lindon a job, making the first half of the movie a domestic montage that perpetually drives home a single point: unqualified people do not get priority on the job market. I've seen it done miles better in "Mondays in the Sun," without resorting to static, 5-minute-long dialogue scenes. The subsequent job sure ends up being the most thoughtful part of the movie, as Thierry tries to balance shreds of his integrity with being a wage slave in a cage. Ultimately, the measure of a man is apparently not snitching on your coworkers' petty thefts because the working class needs to shoplift to survive. This is a silly observation, but what is even sillier is the director's belief that this ending is in any way a defiance of capitalism's windmill. Rated 3 out of 5 stars 01/06/23 Full Review Audience Member Todos pasamos por algo similar al buscar trabajo y cuando pasan cosas raras en los trabajos. 4 stars Rated 4 out of 5 stars 01/22/23 Full Review richard i It's a lot to ask of Vincent Lindon to carry this whole film, but he does his excellent best with a story in which we find precious little out about him, really, other than that he accepts his lot with a certain amount of stoicism, while the people around him remain fairly opaque to us. The clearly largely improvised script is delivered convincingly on the whole, but the attempt to give us an 'insight' into the way capitalism divides us is a bit fluffed and has been done better before. Nowhere near as good as Mademoiselle Chambon, a true classic of this observational genre. Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 03/30/23 Full Review Audience Member Extremely slow and meticulous, but totally realistic. Rated 3 out of 5 stars 02/14/23 Full Review Audience Member This Cannes-winning sociological drama gives a discerning gaze with fly-on-the-wall long takes on the adversities braved on by a stoic French unemployed everyman and his painful moral dilemma on the other side of the fence in his later employment as a supermarket security guard. Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 01/22/23 Full Review Audience Member A tale of the modern day job hunt. French films are the second most I watched apart from the English language films. It's mainly because of the quality of their products. They won't put big sum on some superhero film like the Hollywood, they give preference to storytelling and the characters which I love even in a slow pace narration. Anyway, you would be tired of listening to what I'm going to say that I always love French and Japanese films, mostly the drama films. This is the latest one I saw that I did not think of giving it a try after the average reception, but once I watched I realised how much underrated the film was. This is like another 'Two Days, One Night', but a bit touch of 'The Pursuit of Happiness' with the limited sentiments. There's no comparison with any other titles, except the similarity in themes. You can call it a docudrama, because it was very realistic that you won't feel like you are watching a film. Especially not for an entertainment purpose. If you are so, then stop there and try other flick. This could resemble your life, at least some way if you ever struggled to get an employment after getting released from the previous job. I am not talking about the freshers or the youngsters, but in between the jobs, mostly the middle-aged and less qualified men's perspective. The modern world belongs to the young blood. Being somewhat old and not skilled with today's technologies is a big excuse to exclude from the employment world. That leaves to get one from the smaller wages. Such film is this one which focused on the man called Thierry who was looking for any job for the last two years. His family is small with a wife and a handicapped son. Financially struggling Thierry decides to get a loan from the bank and try to sell his mobile home to meet the expenses. Finally, he ends up in a supermarket as a security guard and follows his new way of struggle against the reality of the world where crime and compassion overlap. "A shoplifter has no age or colour. Everybody is a potential shoplifter." I was desperately looking for some entertainment to relax after the tired day. I jumped on this, and initially it took time to launch into the main storyline. It begins with Thierry having conversation with his old colleagues about the options and if there is any legal solution for his old job. This is the film where pictures, as well as lines carefully watched and listened respectively to understand the intention of such film to be exist. The every word spoken in the film were not like any other films, but it was like real life dialogues between two or more people that we the audience listening them from somewhere around the corner. That's why I compared it with documentary. This is the third film for Vincent Lindon with the director and the best one. The last time I saw him was in the 'Bastards' that I did not like. Surely the best of him after 'Welcome'. He won a few best actor awards for his role in this film, including one at the 2015 Cannes. The film was all about him. He as Theirry was the soul of the film. People start to recognise the actors since they saw them in one of their best performances and now I for Vincent Lindon through this film. Obviously very slow at the beginning, but once you start to feel you know enough about Thierry, it gets more interesting. Particularly the final act was impressive. It points out how narrowly our society was built where you can't escape the disappointment if you are a sensitive person about the actions that entirely depends on the situation whether its good (empathy) or bad (crime). This film is everything. You can call it a self-discovery or truth finder, but well detailed about the modern day job hunt by an average person. Even if he gets one, does it stand up to his moral dimensions? Because some people mind what they are doing, even though getting it after a desperate attempt. Like I said I saw it in a wrong circumstance, but I did not fail to recognise fineness of it. This is one of the best drama films I have seen, especially in the recent times. If you are looking for a realistic portrayal film, this is the one. It might be an under- noticed film today, but the time will come when people look back on this decade for how the lives and society evolved, then this little precious film will impact greater which depicted exactly what's happening right now. What I meant was some films are not meant for the present, despite all the films are made for the present!!! 8/10 Rated 4 out of 5 stars 01/30/23 Full Review Read all reviews
The Measure of a Man

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Cast & Crew

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Movie Info

Synopsis At the age of 51, Thierry starts a new job that soon brings him face to face with a moral dilemma.
Director
Stéphane Brizé
Producer
Christophe Rossignon, Philip Boëffard
Screenwriter
Stéphane Brizé, Olivier Gorce
Distributor
Kino Lorber
Production Co
Nord-Ouest Films, Arte France Cinema
Genre
Drama
Original Language
French (France)
Release Date (Theaters)
Apr 15, 2016, Limited
Release Date (Streaming)
Aug 16, 2016
Box Office (Gross USA)
$112.1K
Runtime
1h 33m
Aspect Ratio
Scope (2.35:1)
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