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PLOT: In France, a young labourer from the Republic of Georgia is stiffed on a house repair when his employer dies. He intercepts instructions intended for his late client about a mysterious big-money "job." Seeking redress, he follows the instructions and finds himself with his life on the line in a lethal, illegal gambling activity.
It's my experience that some people get a little silly about what constitutes a "spoiler," such that almost any plot revelation qualifies. But certain movies do fall legitimately into The Crying Game category.
13 (Tzameti), the spare and powerful thriller by Georgian-born French director Gela Babluani, is somewhere in that territory. The movie opens in one tense gear, and halfway through reveals a shocking secret that informs the rest of the movie with almost overwhelming stress.
This narrative punch-in-the-stomach, combined with an unblinking regard for life-and-death scenarios, explains the comparisons to Eli Roth's Hostel and various Tarantino films that this head-turning, first-time feature elicits. I'd suggest a much deadlier Fight Club.
13 (Tzameti) begins in a seedy seaside town, where labourer Sebastien (George Babluani, the director's brother) is the sole means of support for his Georgian mother and disabled brother (the movie is subtitled, with dialogue in French and Georgian).
Sebastien is employed repairing the home of a drug addict named M. Godon (Philippe Passon) and his exasperated young wife (Olga Legrand). Beyond his addiction, there's a physical and mental decrepitude to Godon that suggests a terrible past (he's weirdly fascinated with Sebastien's age and purity).
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Through a hole in the roof, Sebastien overhears Godon's "business" and becomes aware that he's about to take a secret but well-paying "job." Then Godon dies, leaving Sebastien without any means of getting paid.
Thus comes 13 (Tzameti)'s biggest suspension-of-disbelief moment, when Sebastien stumbles across a hotel reservation, train ticket and rendezvous instructions for the still mysterious "job." Intent on seeking redress, he follows the directions and ends up embroiled in an underworld gambling tournament with millions on the table, and a lethal twist. Why an outwardly benign man is compelled to hurl himself into an unknown, clearly illegal and almost certainly dangerous situation isn't clear. But once he's there, the movie begins to steamroll on its premise alone.
13 (Tzameti) isn't about torture (other than the psychological kind) and it isn't about gore, which means when it comes to the thriller or horror genres in North America these days, it might as well come from another planet -- let alone another continent. In the most horrifying scenario, George Babluani gives a minimalist performance, communicating with beads of sweat rather than expressions of Grand Guignol horror.
On the other hand, those looking for art in their art-house horror might find 13 (Tzameti) bereft of larger themes. Man's inhumanity to man might be stretching it a bit. But there is a feral intensity to the movie that suggests the worst day of Sebastien's life is also his most perversely exciting, a day in which his senses are heightened and he is utterly alive.
Be aware: 13 (Tzameti) is a raw movie, and at times a sickening one. But it's the work of a young filmmaker with razor-sharp vision and energy, unspoiled by convention and as yet not apparently influenced by Hollywood.
BOTTOM LINE: A stark thriller that elicits comparisons with movies from Fight Club to Hostel to Tarantino films. Shot in black-and-white (with subtitled French and Georgian dialogue), it's less graphic than those, yet comes off like a punch in the stomach. A terrific, focused first-effort by the Georgian emigre Gela Babluani.
(This film is rated 14-A)