A sinewy and breathless thriller from France, “The Assault” recounts the true story of the 1994 hijacking of a French plane in Algeria, where extremely well-armed Islamist fanatics stormed the plane with the intent of flying it into the Eiffel Tower.
Directed with searing intensity by Julien Leclercq, who strips the movie of almost all color, the film steers clear of hero talk and stagy acting, and doesn’t bother with trying to psychoanalyze the terrorists, who are driven by nothing but religious lunacy. Instead, it stays right with the plane, the elite GIGN force of French commandos tasked with securing it after it lands in Marseille, and the bureaucrats at the foreign ministry who search for a nonmilitary solution. One idea, “buying peace,” turns out to lead only to enriching the terrorists with 700,000 francs.
“The Assault,” which builds to an almost unbearably vivid scene in which the assault squad goes to work, is so gripping and focused that it easily bests Hollywood movies with 50 times its budget. Leclercq is that rare French director who may find himself courted by big studios.