Based loosely on a true story premise where a French gangster got pumped with lead and left for dead but miraculously survived the hit, 22 Bullets is a revenge flick worthy of its Europa Corp pedigree so you'll know just what to expect - a stylish thriller filled with anti-heroes, and plenty of gratuitous violence with the charismatic Jean Reno in the role of an avenging angel out to settle scores when the perpetrators just wouldn't leave him alone in his retired life.

As the adage goes, one can never quite leave the gangland, and Reno's Charly Mattei, a once feared mobster in Marseille who signalled his retirement through the selling of his businesses to childhood friend Tony Zacchia (Kad Merad in a serious role), it's all about having a reputation that's still influential, and in order for friends to want to move along with their plans against his moral tones of zero involvement in drugs, the only way is to launch a pre- emptive strike to take Mattei out of the equation, only for the group of gunmen to fail in their quest and Mattei's reputation grows to become L'Immortel for obvious reasons.

Like the Godfather series, one may want to get out from one's violent past, but circumstances pull one right back into the thick of the action. For Mattei, it's almost giving the other cheek up for another slap when the mob goes after him in the hospital, but the last straw that broke the camel's back came from the targeting of his remaining loyal soldiers, and thus the avenging angel is born, nevermind if one of his arm is now paralyzed.

It's a story of honour amongst thieves, how some hoodlums fail to pay heed to the established rules of engagement of never crossing the line to hurt women and children, and essentially family members in their violent public spat. As for the cops led by Marie Goldman (Marina Fois), she's eager to look for an opening to avenge her husband's killing, yet bounded by duty to know that she has to keep personal and business separate. What more, it's to the police's advantage that the mob is killing one another, and thus warned to keep an arm's length at the explosive gangland war. In a strange parallel between those finding on opposite sides of the fence, it's all about doing a job, and then going home to family at the end of the day.

Directed by Richard Berry who also had a small role in the film, 22 Bullets is unflinching in its violence, and the mowing down of Charly Mattei early in the film somehow is reminiscent of other massacres such as that of Sonny Corleone in Francis Ford Coppola's The Godfather, or Murphy in Paul Verhoeven's Robocop. Don't expect Mattei to be dishing out revenge with creativity though, as his is a simple dispatch involving a signature one shot to the head, and one to the heart, two critical areas to ensure the grim reaper comes calling. There are the occasional lapses into monologues, although it does play up the fear factor here when he carries out the threat of striking when his enemies least expect him to.

Jean Reno as usual excels in this role, and you'll find yourself rooting for his character despite his flaws and what his character actually was in the past. As Zacchia puts it succinctly, a wrong is a wrong no matter what layer of morality gets draped over it. Kad Merad's Zacchia too puts in a moment of brilliance when he delivered a hypocritical speech about the value of close friendships, while his demeanour behind closed doors is anything but, lying to the masses without a flinch.

22 Bullets is a straightforward thriller that worked without too much surprises, but its slick delivery more than makes up for any of its shortcomings.

The Immortal tells the story of an older man, Charly Matteï, who claims to have quit the mafia in Marseille, France. He has a family and lives in peace, but is suddenly shot in a serious hit. Charly is shot 22 times but, amazingly, survives. After the hit and recovery, the scarred ex-mafioso is thirsty for a bloody revenge. What follows is an intense, action-packed and bloody thriller.

The story is quite simple and The Immortal definitely has it's flaws, but overall it is an awesome ride. Jean Reno is back on track in this great French production. The Immortal may not be as good as Un Prophet but could definitely become a cult classic like the first Boondock Saints. 7/10

I discovered this movie in a DVD store in South of France and after I watched the trailer and read the critics I gave it a try.

Well it is very interesting to see Kad Merad and Jean Reno in this underground thriller of the Marseillais mafia. I saw for the first time Kad Merad in a bad guy role and he played this one very convincing. Then Jean Reno was as usual great.

Director Richard Berry created here a fast paced thriller that was never boring. The pictures around Marseille and the sea were wonderful. The only thing I missed was that the story is told rather superficially. The act of revenges could have been executed variously than all the time in the same way.

My vote with my wife is a 7/10 because all in all it's another example how with a low budget a solid popcorn movie can be done. French movies are the best in Europe so far and sometimes even better than the other average Hollywood productions.

I have to admit that 22 Bullets is quite a bit more violent than I'm comfortable with; bursts, yes but this revenge thriller starring the venerable Jean Reno is fairly constant, unrelenting and rather ugly.

Yes, it's certificate 18 and is about mobsters, current and ex, slaughtering each other, so I shouldn't be surprised and of course, I could have turned it off. But, it's quite a good movie, quite a long one at a whisker under two hours and so I stuck it out. My three stars is not altered by feelings on this aspect.

Reno, as Charly Mattei is reliably grizzled and back in his native language, does not suffer the stumbling block he had with the English language that he did when he made films in the U.S. Here, he's natural and believable - not exactly likable but it's impossible not to side with him when he stalks his enemies. There's a pretty high body count, accompanied by some very realistic looking wounds, that really aren't very attractive to look at! The make-up department did well, here.

The music has a big part to play in creating the tone, often thunderous and pounding and along with often frenetic camera-work, the film's undeniably jolting and exciting, though those prone to suffering one may well get a migraine as bad as the one that one of the mobsters did.

There are a good number of reviews for this title that outline plot details. I'm going to leave that out - people don't need to read that over again.

All in all, it's a solid movie on a familiar theme, quite involved with some exciting action and stunts. Reno is very good, as all the actors are. If you like your thrillers full-blood and graphically violent, then this could well be an excellent rental or DVD purchase. Me - it's not my favourite and will leave it at that.

Jean Renos character would probably not even smile at 50 Cents near-death experience. That wouldn't even be considered a scratch in his book. But apart from this (useless?) trivia, there is so much that you can find in this movie. Jean Renos characterization for once. The story and the other characters too.

Of course you could say that this is romanticising an evil person a bit. But then again, this is a movie. You cannot try and apply rules of real life to it. Other movies with criminals involved might have been worse in that regard. And after all, there are experiences in life, that are truly life-changing. And if what Renos character has gone through does not count, what else does?

It's not all drama though, there is a good portion of action to be found here. And very well shot (no pun) and acted out. The end could not have been any other. At least not for me. Highly recommended

I have to say I'm not a fan of Besson's productions, but this one is a good surprise. If you're looking for a very clever plot, forget it. But if you want to enjoy beautiful views of the glorious city of Marseille and have a thrill at the gangster's atmosphere it used to live in, this is the one. Jean Reno is solid like usual, Kad Merad -such a good actor- doesn't find his comfort zone in the bad guy, Marina Fois is brilliant, what on earth is Richard Berry doing in his own movie where his role has no impact? Overall a good moment, not Borsalino or French connection, but i definitely recommend it. If you want to see more of this mysterious city, try to locate the following titles: Comme un aimant, Taxi, Un ange, FC 1 and 2, Borsalino 1 and 2, movies with Raimu...

I am fond of thriller movies where dramatic events happen in the very beginning. And where you must follow the plot intensely, not just nodding and seeking clichés... There are lots of events and lines where it is not sure what the solutions will be.

Jean Reno's character fills most of the scenes and all this is enjoyable to watch - he is one of the finest French contemporary actors. L'immortel, of course, is not as good and popular as Leon, or Ronin, where Reno has starred before, but it is still a highly recommendable action movie where fans of Luc Besson's work will not become disappointed.

...and that's saying something!

Jean Reno sleepwalks his way through this film playing anti hero Charly Matei, a retired Marseilles gangster who is brutally gunned down following his retirement from the mob.

The premise throughout the film is that it is impossible to escape your past, no matter how many new leaf's you turn over, someone, somewhere is still looking for you.In matei's case it is childhood friend and mob boss 'Zak' who Matei sold his gangland enterprise to.

For reasons never made clear in the film Matei has to be killed because Zak has now expanded the business to include cocaine manufacture and distribution.

Pumped full of bullets and left for dead Matei begins to piece together who was responsible and following the brutal murder of loyal henchman Karim Matei packs his family off for safety and embarks on a one man killing spree culminating in a tense stand off with Zak.

Throughout the film is littered with lazy cliché' after cliché' and there are no real surprises along the way, it's not even stylish in the way that perhaps French Cinema should be.

Lazy, hampered by a poor script, and plodding in places Reno hams it up almost in 'Omage to Vincent Price, the scene in the car with Goldman as he begs her to have some compassion for his kidnapped son and his lip quivering is just text book ham, as is a later scene where he struggles his way through more barbed wire than those landing on the beaches on D Day encountered.

Pure hokum, but won't tax your cerebral cortex too much if you have nothing better to do on a rainy day.

I went to this movie in Sneak Preview, otherwise I probably would not have gone to watch it. The thought of watching a two hour thing about a French mafioso (do they even have Mafia in France?) who survives 22 bullets and then goes on a rampage of revenge, just doesn't appeal to me...

I'm going to have to admit that the movie wasn't really that bad though. There were some nice (and also brutal) scenes and Jean Reno was his usual steady self, nothing spectacular, but not bad either... overall the acting wasn't too bad. Not outstanding either, but given the fact that there are a lot of French nobody's in the film, (no disrespect intended!) that was a pleasant surprise.

However, there were too many cliché's in this movie to make it anything more than amusing. The whole story was very predictable, with no unexpected plot twists or anything spectacular that will make it memorable.

Conclusion: If you wanna lay back and watch an entertaining movie, this is probably one for you. However, if you are looking for a little more depth, pass on this one. It's not like you haven't seen this before...

Luc Besson has been on a roll for quite a while, producing fun stupid movies that do decent business worldwide but are forgotten a few days after viewing. This time they've added a 'serious' / 'adult' / 'complex' plot and the always reliable Jean Reno.

The movie is a mess, jumping from one cliché ridden scene to the next, if you've seen a dozen thrillers in your lifetime, chances are that you've seen most of what l'immortel has to offer. Reno tries to do some good work but the script is so below mediocre that he fails, sometimes almost laughingly. But don't worry, they've got violence to keep interest up. 'Shocking' violence that is there exclusively to be there.

Before I go, I want to leave with you this gold nugget of a line of dialogue...

Disgruntled Female Cop to her chief: "For this job, I leave my emotions at home..."

No purpose, no originality, no thank you.

Well, this feature is exactly just what I expected. A taut, brutal french gangster film. I watched it with great pleasure, but that's all. Because it's too much predictable for me. You find here the scheme of the good gangster vs the bad ones. The hood who respects ethics against those who don't and take children as hostages. Here are some good action sequences and torture, the acting is acceptable and the characters, well...

Some are not so foreseeable. For instance Kad Merad in a gang leader character, or Jean Pierre Darrousin as the Jean Reno's friend, in a character not so usual for him.

Marseille is well shown. Sunny Marseille, the most famous city about underworld in Europe, and probably in the whole world.

But, I repeat, there is no real surprise in this bloody - not for the sissies - tale inspired by actual events.

There is just one last thing I'd like to say about this movie:

When some one is shot in the belly and the chest by 00 Buckshots, HE CANNOT SURVIVE. With 22 .45 caliber bullets, yes, perhaps, it actually happened, but with .12 Caliber, and at close range, no Sir.

Try it...

Of course, I am kidding.

The British critics haven't been very kind to this one which is a great pity. Okay, no one's talking masterpiece here, but nevertheless it is a very fine film in a genre we've seen quite a bit of lately from France, i.e. a film based on real people who inhabit violent worlds. If I were reviewing it for people with a limited attention span I'd describe succinctly as Mesrine with Real Acting. This is because, for one thing, leading man Jean Reno actually has a genuine acting RANGE, that spans out-and-out comedy (Les Visiteurs), comedy-drama (Tais-Toi) and even Rom-Com (Decalage Horaire) whereas Vincent Cassell is merely a thug who makes a handsome living playing himself under various pseudonyms. As if Reno were not enough we have Jean-Pierre Darroussin, one of the finest actors in current French cinema who has also distinguished himself as a fine director, Kad Merad, an excellent light comedian here extending his range and playing against type and Marina Fois, amongst the finest actresses currently working in France. Director Richard Berry has 98 acting credits on his CV and this is his fifth outing behind the camera and he begins the movie beautifully with a long, elegaic sequence as ex-hood Reno drives leisurely into Marseilles with his small son. Though we know that there are 22 bullets with his name on them at the end of the ride we are happy to suspend our disbelief so effective is Berry's direction. If you like, for example, the work of Olivier Marchal (36, Quai des Orfevres) then you'll surely like this one which shows up Mesrine for the merde it is.

Jean Reno is...simply Jean Reno. If you do not like his acting, don't waste your time with this gangster film. If you do appreciate him and if you are familiar with the area around Marseille and, even better, if you like Marseille, this film is a must. If you know French and appreciate dialects, watch this film.

The feel-good (in relative terms..there is nothing mentioned about PTSD here...) ending does not hurt, I was waiting for half the film for the revenge and for Charley Matteï do save his family.

I was also wondering if the place on the coast where he hid was the same as used in "La Grand Bleue" (remember one of the first major films with Jean Reno?). Would be a funny wink if it was.

I've read many plot synopsis' for this film, and not one seems to be correct. The glaring omission of how this story really kicks off, changes its point entirely. Jean Reno does not go out on a rampage of revenge after being shot 22 times. In fact, he discovers who was behind it and then leaves it at that. He is a retired gangster and a man perfectly happy to forgive. This film isn't just about revenge, but also pride, honor, and how crime never lets go. Reno was sucked into this world of crime after committing one hit out of revenge. He hasn't been allowed to quit since. It's only later, after the grisly murder of a friend, that the revenge part kicks off. What I like about Reno's revenge is that he takes his time. In Faster, The Rock just shoots people. Here, Reno tells them he is coming, and makes them sweat it out. The second half turns ALL action. It's more like a Bourne film than gangster film. The action scenes are excellent, even if Reno's morality speeches are often contradictory and unnecessary. A film that mostly deals with revenge in a mature fashion, showing the cyclical nature of vengeance.

this is a great action movie,a great movie with jean reno on top of is game,this movie has a little of everything to have a great time.the association between all the actors is great the cast is really good ,the actions scene are great much better then the ones in American movies,jean reno is the best actor in the world.this movie is great to have a good time,it,s a very entertaining movie the should make more of those movies because they are simply great.the story was very good a great gangster movie,this is a great actions movie take everybody can enjoy.jean reno is such a great actor and the director also made a amazing work.I hope that they make more of those movie because the are simply great

I can't believe that in all of France there isn't one person who can do a decent translation of French into English subtitles. Considering that Reno is a major star, you'd think they would provide those of us viewers who "je ne parle pas" with less embarrassing captions. I mean c'mon folks, it's really annoying to have to translate the translation. This was on par with the worst of Russian and Asian subtitle efforts -- only not nearly as funny.

Notwithstanding the lousy captions, as far as I could tell Jean Reno plays retired French mobster Charlie Mattei who is assassinated and shot 22 times. He survives, miraculously, and vows to find out who ordered the hit. Very soon the line between friends and foes starts to blur as he gets closer to the truth and the core of Marseille's underbelly.

22 Bullets - originally titled "L'immortel" - is a vengeance movie as much as it is a mafia flick, so I am not surprised that the angle shifts from who-dunnit to "how's he gonna kill 'em all?" Still, L'immortel is trying to sell itself to us as serious crime drama, showing some historic snippets of Reno becoming the kingpin and so forth. But L'immortel never really is more than skin deep when it comes to the characters' backgrounds, careers or lifestyles, therefore their actions, thoughts and motivations stay in the dark.

L'immortel has a few highlights, but complexity, character development and consistency are not its strong suit. Most importantly however it lacks the street cred and its authenticity of e.g. GOMORRAH. L'immortel may not be a terrible movie, but it's not much more than overcooked stew made of the genre's most frequently used ingredients.

Jean Reno returns to the kind of sensitive tough guy role which gained him worldwide fame in Leon in the early-90s. Franz-Olivier Giesbert's novel based on real life crime in the Marseille underworld, L'Immortel, inspired the character of Charly Matteï - a one-time gangster who reforms for the sake of a quiet life with his wife and family.

22 Bullets has a fine premise – the moral consequences inherent in a reformed criminal trying to turn his back upon the violence and degradation of his former life, and whether such a way of life can be consigned to the past. The calibre of the acting talent is underused by the script and plot, while the setting of Marseille could have been used to much stronger effect to reflect the harshness and beauty of the film's feudal moral code. Given the promise of its concept and cast, the film disappoints. KR

Right....Now when i saw the trailer for this i thought Leon had risen from the grave but i don't know i think overall the story was good the filming was good but the end has a lot to answer for if your expecting a big finish after all the climax in the film think again it just kinda fizzled out to me.

I think in a lot of ways they have tried to get people to buy this by the trailer looking a lot like a "leon 2" but don't get sucked in like i did cos its not anywhere near it.

its still worth a watch if your not expecting much but i wouldn't go out of my way to buy it on blue ray .

If you like jigsaw puzzle, you might like this movie. I don't understand French, so I rely on the subtitle. However, the combination of bad subtitle and jigsaw puzzle does not really go hand in hand. The plot was confusing, the story does not give enough time for you to understand who is who and then they start to kill each other. Too much jumping around and with no clear connection at the time the story. Even after the end of the movie, you still confuse with the cause of the story line.

I am a fan of Jean Reno and I have to say without him, I would not watch this movie. I have no complain with his act, but most of the other actors looked like they just act as soon as they finished their acting class. If you like blood flowing, this is the movie for you...

The reason I decided to watch the film was mainly the participation of Jean Reno. However, the overall taste fell below my expectations.

The most disturbing issue in the movie is the existence of roles (actors) which offer nothing to the plot. For example, would it make any difference in the story if Jean Reno had only one wife or none instead of two? Do you actually remember the name and the participation of the third member of the three children which then comprise the mafia gang?

Moreover, the movie seems very predictable and Jean Reno very old for this kind of story. However, he is the one who survives from this bad and indifferent movie.

To conclude, I think that there is nothing to remember from this film which seems to count only on the leading actor. Disappointment!

This movie is bad. I had a bad premonition from the opening scenes with Jean Reno driving around with lots of attention to cliché opera and an obnoxious little kid...the Yuppie PC red lights started to blink.

I was not wrong...corny shot after corny shot--this movie is flat out bad almost so bad as to be funny....the only thing that makes it kind of bearable is it is filmed so close up it provides some interest in the camera angles. That's it.

The story? Gangster trying to retire is gunned down but he lives and goes after the other gangsters who now deal in drugs---apparently he feels that is immoral.

AVOID

This movie uses French as language but it has subtitles.

It has lots of action and it is about an ex-gang member trying to get revenge after he got gunned down.

Although you could say it's somewhat predictable it was never boring and I felt it was worth watching despite it having long duration.

If you don't speak or understand French, don't watch this movie. The translation in the subtitles is atrocious. Seems like the translator couldn't speak a lick of French or knew very little English.

Movie starts out OK but bogs down trying to justify too much Jean Reno's role as Charlie, a nice man with high morales that just happens to have been (focus on the pas tense) a vicious mob boss.

Good story, and Jean Reno keeps it moving in the last 30 minutes. I kinda hoped that the lady detective would play a more active role and at least killed somebody, but at least she didn't meddle too much in Charlie's payback.

There is something about the revenge movies...Perhaps it taps into some primal hunter and protector in all of us. Even after centuries of so-called civilization, we are still creatures of instinct.

And here comes a very well done, albeit not very original revenge thriller. There is nothing here we didn't see before, many, many times. Nevertheless it works. Excellent pacing, well choreographed violence, good character actors, and, of course a sense of justice done. Something we do not see very often in real life. The bad guy these days not only gets away with murder, but usually runs for office and lecture us about patriotism. Maybe that's why this flick works so well. Like an old-fashioned western. You run the villains out of town and ride into the sunset.

When the French make good films they are really very good indeed and L'immortel is no exception to the rule. The story of a "retired" criminal who is endangering his family by simply being alive and up against two rival gangs plus the law is extremely taut, full of unpleasantness and very, very realistically portrayed. It is also compelling to watch, with a screenplay to die for and excellent craftmanship on the movie front. Brilliantly acted by all concerned, and with so much care taken over characterisations it carries you into a life you do not ever want to touch in Marseille. It makes its many points carefully and does not dwell on sentimentality.

Charly Mattei (Reno) is barely off the screen and we are treated to the kind of performance this actor almost always delivers. He is superb. Marie Goldman (Fois) is also a beautifully sculptured piece of character acting, flawed but very real. I could go on naming names for their wonderful acting skills for their is no one who gives less than their best.

It is a tough film and not to everyone's taste for the violence is often large as life and graphic. But if you survive the "dare I watch" moments you are rewarded with a super film which will have you gripped until the last.