Horst in Translation ([email protected])
"Ennemis intérieurs" is a French short film from 2016 that runs for slightly under half an hour and was written and directed by Selim Azzazi, who was mostly known so far for his work in the sound department, also in Hollywood movies. But the success for this one here, i.e. the Oscar nomination, may motivate him to become a full feature filmmaker now as well. His ethical background at least is perfect for this little movie about Algeria, France and the terrorism reference also makes it a somewhat relevant watch. But even if the dialogues were solid, I was never really impressed here. The film is (with the exception of minor flashbacks) basically a dialogue between two people from start to finish, the interrogator and the interrogatee (if that word exists). Crime is a crucial component here, but so are suspense and drama. I think i read before the Oscars that this was considered the front runner for the Best Live Action Short win, but I personally am not too surprised it did not win, not because the material is so heavy and because it is so bleak, but also because it had not as much to offer as the other nominees. It is probably the second weakest of the nominees and while I see occasional potential by Azzazi here, I still hope he can improve in the future if he decides to direct more films. I give "Enemies within" a thumbs-down. It's probably only worth checking out for people with a direct connection to the subject here as I never felt it was a film that could get you actually interested in the Algeria conflict. I also think it may have worked better as a stage play than a film.