A2 Film Studies. Introduction to La Haine

1. LA HAINE:
AN INTRODUCTION
emma.laing@gateshead.ac.uk
Resources:
Pens
Blank person worksheet
Opening sequence clip
Clip analysis worksheet
La Haine interview clip

2. TODAY
 The aim of this lesson is to explore the context
in which La Haine was produced.
 By the end of the lesson you will have:
 Analysed the films opening sequence
 Identified some of the films key themes
 Explored the context in which the film was
produced
5 minutes

3. STARTER: Vive la France!
 In groups, illustrate what you think a typical
person living in France may look like.
 Think about:
 What stereotypes do we associate with French culture
and France as a nation?
 What characteristics or stereotypes do we associate
with French people?
10 minutes

4. STARTER: Vive la France!
 La Haine is a french film
that is said to subvert
cultural expectations
(Stafford, 2000)
 It is set in the banlieues of
Paris.
 ‘les banlieues’ is often used
as a euphemism to
describe low-income
housing projects in which
mainly French immigrants
reside.

5. LA HAINE: KEY FACTS
 Mathieu Kassovitz
 1995
 France
 Vincent Cassel, Hubert Koundé & Saïd
Taghmaoui
5 minutes

6. OPENING
 Using the worksheet provided, analyse the
opening of the film.
 Who is represented and how?
 What themes are evident?
10 minutes

7. LA HAINE
 “La Haine is an anti-police film and that is
how I meant it to be understood”
-Kassovitz at premiere, Cannes Film Festival 1995
 Several high-profile instances of racism
and police brutality - ‘a wake up call’.
5 minutes

8. CONTEXT
 Makome M’Bowole (1993)
 Malik Oussenkine (1986)
 Riots 1986–96
 Citizens/non-citizens
 A person born in France to foreign parents must
wait until adulthood to apply for citizenship
5 minutes

9. PRODUCTION
 Not all actors are professionals.
 Unstaged footage of riots.
 On-location in Parisian suburbs
 Kassovitz is publicly critical of government
10 minutes

10. RECAP
 Subversion of cultural ideals
 Inspired by real events
 Kassovitz used non-actors to have a ‘gritty’
‘realist’ feel
 Key themes:
 Poverty/Masculinity/Fraternity/Crime/Youth
5 minutes