''Inside'' (, also released in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

as ''Banged Up'') is a Québécois film directed by

Michel Jetté Michel Jetté is a Québécois director, screenwriter, producer and editor. He produced three full-length movies, several short films, and over a hundred television reports.

and released in

2002 The effects of the September 11 attacks of the previous year had a significant impact on the affairs of 2002. The war on terror was a major political focus. Without settled international law, several nations engaged in anti-terror operation ...

, about a young man's time in a

penitentiary A prison, also known as a jail, gaol, penitentiary, detention center, correction center, correctional facility, or remand center, is a facility where people are Imprisonment, imprisoned under the authority of the State (polity), state, usually ...

. It is based on Léo Lévesque's collection of prison stories ''Contes en coup de poing''. The film was

classified Classified may refer to: General *Classified information, material that a government body deems to be sensitive *Classified advertising or "classifieds" Music *Classified (rapper) (born 1977), Canadian rapper * The Classified, a 1980s American ro ...

13+ in Québec and 18+ in the United Kingdom, and features Emmanuel Auger, Karyne Lemieux and David Boutin.

Plot summary

19-year-old Claude begins a 10-year sentence at a penitentiary. Rousseau, a member of Tarzan's gang, attempts to rape him soon after his entry, but Claude is not a novice at fighting and dissuades him from further attempts. Tarzan puts out a contract to assassinate him. The leader of a rival gang, Zizi Grenier, reveals the contract to Claude and offers his protection if Claude will fight for him. The two gangs hold public

boxing Boxing is a combat sport and martial art. Taking place in a boxing ring, it involves two people – usually wearing protective equipment, such as boxing glove, protective gloves, hand wraps, and mouthguards – throwing Punch (combat), punch ...

events to avoid all-out war, with disputed territories put on the line. Claude accepts, but over the course of these duels learns of the power games playing out in the background. Claude becomes friends with Lucia (a

transvestite Cross-dressing is the act of wearing clothes traditionally or stereotypically associated with a different gender. From as early as pre-modern history, cross-dressing has been practiced in order to disguise, comfort, entertain, and express onesel ...

) and Jacques (a

schizophrenic Schizophrenia () is a mental disorder characterized variously by hallucinations (typically, Auditory hallucination#Schizophrenia, hearing voices), delusions, thought disorder, disorganized thinking and behavior, and Reduced affect display, f ...

). He tells them about his love for a girl named Karine and their misadventures which led to his imprisonment, including

petty theft Theft (, cognate to ) is the act of taking another person's property or services without that person's permission or consent with the intent to deprive the rightful owner of it. The word ''theft'' is also used as a synonym or informal short ...

car theft Motor vehicle theft or car theft (also known as a grand theft auto in the United States) is the Crime, criminal act of Theft, stealing or attempting to steal a motor vehicle. In 2020, there were 810,400 vehicles reported stolen in the United ...

, drug use, an attempted

armed robbery Robbery is the crime of taking or attempting to take anything of value by force, threat of force, or use of fear. According to common law, robbery is defined as taking the property of another, with the intent to permanently deprive the person o ...

gone wrong, and finally involuntary

manslaughter Manslaughter is a common law legal term for homicide considered by law as less culpable than murder. The distinction between murder and manslaughter is sometimes said to have first been made by the ancient Athenian lawmaker Draco in the 7th ce ...

during their escape. Lucia is later found dead in her cell. Claude quits the fights, and befriends a man known as "the Phantom". After Claude is raped with the secret backing of the prison administration, the Phantom helps him escape by illicitly getting him into the prison workshop, and hiding him in a locker shipped out of the prison. Claude rejoins Karine in her drug business, but on a delivery comes across one of the gang members who aided in his rape, arranges a meeting, and murders him. He is arrested and returned to the penitentiary, to learn of Jacques' suicide. Soon after he is subdued when he learns that he has

AIDS The HIV, human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) is a retrovirus that attacks the immune system. Without treatment, it can lead to a spectrum of conditions including acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). It is a Preventive healthcare, pr ...

, and at the Phantom's request is transferred to a minimum-security prison. The movie ends with a letter from the Phantom to Karine informing her of his transfer.

Cast

* Emmanuel Auger as Claude * Karyne Lemieux as Karine * David Boutin as Jacques le Schizo * Paul Dion as L'Fantôme * Dominic Darceuil as Lucia * Sylvain Beauchamps as Tarzan * Louis-David Morasse as Rousseau * Jean-Robert Bourdage as Voix du trou (voice) * Gabriel Bélanger as La Comete Blonde * Deano Clavet as Piston * Christopher Dyson as Claude (voice) * Stéphane Ouellet as Boxeur * Jean-Sébastien Poirier as Zizi Grenier * Michèle Péloquin as Agente Correctionnel - CO

Reception

''Inside'' has received mixed reviews from critics and audiences. Scott Foundas of

Variety Variety may refer to: Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats * Variety (radio) * Variety show, in theater and television Films * ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont * ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...

on 16 October 2002 stated a "by-the-numbers prison drama", with a "litany of prison-movie cliches" and it "won’t travel far outside its native borders". efilmcritic.com said a "gritty, uncompromising prison drama", "it's hard to watch, but it rings so true that it can't be dismissed" and "not a feel-good picture, but it is extremely well made". Charles-Henri Ramond from filmsquebec.com stated it was a "dark and violent social drama".

Accolades

It won an award at the Nickel Independent Film Festival in St. John's, Newfoundland. The film received four

Genie Award The Genie Awards were given out annually by the Academy of Canadian Cinema and Television to recognize the best of Canadian cinema from 1980–2012. They succeeded the Canadian Film Awards (1949–1978), known as the "Etrog Awards" for sculptor ...

nominations at the 23rd Genie Awards in 2003, for Best Supporting Actor (Darceuil), Best Cinematography ( Larry Lynn), Best Overall Sound (Gavin Fernandes, Bobby O'Malley and Philippe Pelletier) and Best Sound Editing (Louis Collin, Natalie Fleurant and Denis Saindon)."2003 Genie Awards nominees"
'' Playback'', December 19, 2002.

References

External links

* {{IMDb title, 0277625, Histoire de pen
Synopsis
at

Radio-Canada Radio-Canada may refer to: * CBC/Radio-Canada, the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation *Ici Radio-Canada Télé, the CBC's main French-language television network *Ici Radio-Canada Première Ici Radio-Canada Première (formerly Première Chaîne) i ...

2002 films Films directed by Michel Jetté Canadian prison drama films Canadian LGBTQ-related films 2002 LGBTQ-related films 2000s prison drama films 2002 drama films French-language Canadian films HIV/AIDS in Canadian films 2000s Canadian films 2000s French-language films LGBTQ-related crime drama films French-language drama films