Le Prix du succès (2017)
Directed by Teddy Lussi-Modeste

Film Review

After finding considerable acclaim with his first feature, Jimmy Rivière (2011), director Teddy Lussi-Modeste serves up another vibrant slice-of-life comedy-drama inspired by his own firsthand experiences as an artist emerging from humble origins.  Le Prix du succès (a.k.a. The Price of Success) treads more familiar ground than the director's first feature, offering a fairly prosaic portrayal of a stand-up comedian who, having had stardom suddenly thrust upon him, finds himself torn between his personal ambitions and his obligations to his family.  Whilst the film doesn't quite manage to stay clear of the obvious clichés, it is still an engaging and insightful work that reaffirms Lussi-Modeste's standing as a promising auteur filmmaker of some stature.

As with his first feature, Lussi-Modeste scripted the film with Rebecca Zlotowski, who has also proven to be a capable filmmaker in recent years, garnering considerable critical praise for her films Belle Épine (2010) and Grand Central (2013).  The male lead in the latter film, Tahar Rahim, best known for his César-winning performance in Jacques Audiard's Un prophète (2009), takes the central role in Le Prix du succès, partnered with two comparable talents, Roschdy Zem playing his manipulative older brother and Maïwenn (another promising filmmaker) as his girlfriend and most trusted adviser.
 
Rahim has already demonstrated his skill for playing complex, inwardly conflicted characters in a range of impressive auteur pieces, and as the main protagonist in Lussi-Modeste's film - a popular comedian whose yearning for fame, fortune and freedom appear thwarted by his brother - he is harrowingly convincing.  A more charismatic performer like Jamel Debbouze would have been a more obvious shoe-in for the role, but Rahim still manages to arouse our sympathies and keep us hooked even though he is not a natural funny man.

In one of his most brutal and loathsome screen portrayals to date, Zem is no less convincing; he brings such a steely aggression and sheer unbridled nastiness to his portrayal of Rahim's self-interested brother that you are left wondering whether the pursuit of fame is worth it.  Zem's character epitomises the grim downside of success - the relentless vicious parasitism from which no star can ever escape.

With a bigger budget and starrier cast, Le Prix du succès has more box office appeal than Lussi-Modeste's first feature but it doesn't quite have the idiosyncratic charm and resounding authenticity of Jimmy Rivière.  No doubt massively informed by its author's own experiences of being thrown suddenly into the limelight, the film offers up a convincing account of an individual who, having achieved his dream of stardom, finds himself incredibly vulnerable and prey to malign influences.  The one noticeable downside is that the narrative winds up scooting down an all too predictable groove towards the end, failing to deliver the punch-line that we might have hoped for and which the film deserves.

Film Synopsis

Brahim has been waiting for his big break as a stand-up comedian for ten years and now it is finally within his grasp he has no intention of letting it pass him by.  He owes his success as much to his hard-working director Linda, whom he adores, as to his own formidable talents as a humour-smith.  A good son, he continues supporting his family, and has no regrets about doing so.  But Brahim realises that if his run of good fortune is to continue he must part company with his older brother Mourad, the manager he can no longer depend on to look after his best interests.

With his new manager, Hervé, Brahim is confident that his career can only continue on its upwards trajectory, towards heights of stardom that a few years ago he could scarcely imagine.  Once an unknown comedian used to performing in dismal nightclubs, Brahim is now heading for the big time, and woe betide anything or anyone that gets in his way!  Failure is not something he is even prepared to contemplate, but in his relentless pursuit of fame and wealth he will soon discover that success comes at a much higher price than he reckoned for...