Mister Bob is an evocation of Bob Denard, the legendary French mercenary. The character is played by actor Clovis Cornillac. A fitting choice, given how well he fits the role! Instead of retracing Robert Denard’s forty-year career, Mister Bob focuses on a very specific episode: his second stay in the Congo, in 1965. The country was then in the throes of civil war.
Only five years have passed since the independence of this Belgian colony, and this freedom is stirring up many rivalries, on the eve of General Mobutu’s coup d’état. Called in by the then Prime Minister, Moïse Tshombe, “the privateer of the Republic” had to quell the particularly bloody civil war that was shaking the African country. Director Thomas Vincent plunges us into this geopolitical maelstrom, in the midst of the Cold War, with the jolts of decolonization in the background.
The film is a success: the battle scenes are particularly strong. You can feel the bullets whistling through the Congolese forest. The film also plunges us into the character’s doubts and uncertainties. Guided by a sense of honor and loyalty, but disoriented by reversals of alliances and attempts at destabilization. Indeed, Denard will often be held hostage to struggles for influence and Realpolitik as the situation changes. In the words of director Thomas Vincent: “My job was to paint the ambiguous portrait of an ‘Eastwoodian’ character, sympathetic and dubious at the same time, and in that sense terribly human.” Special mentions also to Marc Zinga (Mobutu) and Pascal Nzonzo (Moïse Tshombe).Philippe Denard, Bob Denard’s son, was actively involved in writing the TV movie, alongside Michel Sibra and Jean Guisnel (Secret Défense).
Once again, Canal + has produced a high-quality drama on a sensitive subject that has rarely been tackled on television. With a budget of 4.5 million euros, the encrypted channel has given itself the means to achieve its ambitions.
Mister Bob
Directed by Thomas Vincent.
Starring Clovis Cornillac, Marc Zinga, Christophe Vandevelde, Dan Hertzberg, Gina Haller, Aladin Reibel, Hubert Koundé, Olivier Rabourdin…
Scheduled for broadcast on October 3, 2011 at 8:50 pm on Canal +.
Julien Tissot
Cette publication est également disponible en : Français (French)
