Ares (2016)

Directed by: Jean-Patrick Benes | 80 minutes | drama, science fiction, thriller | Actors: Ola Rapace, Micha Lescot, Thierry Hancisse, Hélène Fillières, Ruth Vega Fernandez, Eva Lallier, Louis-Do de Lencquesaing, Élina Solomon, Yvon Martin, Pierre Perrier, Emilie Gavois-Kahn, Jo Prestia, David Migeot, Vincent Parisi

In ‘Arès’, a post-apocalyptic tale by director Jean-Patrick Benes, we get a dark glimpse of what might be our future. The year is 2035. In the totalitarian anarchy state of France, broken up into Groups, everyone can do whatever he or she wants with his or her body. In a country of 15 million unemployed and a multitude of homeless people, many citizens choose to commercialize their bodies to the powerful pharmaceutical companies for drug experimentation. Okay, you might die, but at least your family has some savings.

Ten years ago, the main character Reda/Arès (Ola Rapace) was a renowned Arena fighter, the most popular sport (a kind of cage fighting for modern gladiators) in the world. Now he isn’t much of a figure anymore, other fighters – most of them pumped full of drugs or genetically modified – have outflanked him. ‘Loser’ Arès gets the chance to regain victories with the help of a new super drug, HSX, developed by the powerful pharma group Bonevia.

When his sister Carla (Emilie Gavois-Kahn) is arrested for illegal possession of weapons, he not only has to take care of her children, the rebellious teenager Anouk (Eva Lallier) and the cute toddler Mae, but also quickly collect 100,000 euros to get her free. . Forced by these circumstances, Ares is persuaded to fight with the dangerous panacea in his body. An extremely deadly type of hormone, which only does its special work for five minutes. Ares manages to beat top favorite Panzer in the 1st round of the European Championship Arena and he is immediately embraced as the face of the perfidious pharmaceutical giant.

Director Benes manages to create an oppressive atmosphere, with nice realistic details (large screens on the Eiffel Tower). It’s a pitch-black future in which big companies call the shots. Give the people bread (drugs) and games (Arena), because life is otherwise hopeless. Confronting, because it is imaginable. It is not inconceivable and that adds to credibility. It’s just a shame that the film, with its 80 minutes, is scant in length…