With the story about the terrorist Illich Ramirez Sánchez, better known as Carlos, a real mammoth project comes to our cinemas. Whether as a "short"version with a running time of 187 minutes, or as a five and a half hour long version, "Carlos - The Jackal" is an exciting, extremely entertaining portrait of a feared legend whose deeds have gone around the world, but of whom nevertheless relatively little is known. That may now change with this film.
In 1973, young Illich Ramirez Sánchez (Edgar Ramírez) is offered the opportunity to lead the PFLP (Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine) in Paris. This begins his rise to become one of the world's most feared terrorists under the name Carlos. Especially the hostage-taking at the OPEC headquarters in Vienna and the subsequent escape by plane in December 1975 keeps the world on tenterhooks for several days. What follows are years of death and terror, which only find their final end in 1994 with the arrest of Carlos.
That is admittedly a very streamlined summary of the events recounted by this Franco-German co-production. Admittedly, the long version of the film demands quite a bit from the viewer, most especially, of course, seat meat. But the work is definitely worth this effort. Because what the makers have put together here is simply great. Meticulously researched, directed with great attention to detail and superbly acted, this film quickly casts a spell over you. Especially Édgar Ramírez delivers an impressive performance, which obviously also demanded a lot from him physically. Ramírez not only portrays the agile, well-toned Carlos, who has women at his feet, but also the sluggish, overweight terrorist.
Director Olivier Assayas strikes the perfect balance between fact and fiction, impressively showing how Carlos was able to manipulate people and win them over, but avoiding portraying him as too heroic and thereby perhaps even glorifying his bloody deeds. Instead, he creates an authentic picture of a time in which extreme ideologies and rage against world politics legitimized terror and violence for many people. The gripping production and the great ensemble of actors thus manages to do what the "Baader Meinhof Komplex" only succeeded in doing to a limited extent.
Suspenseful, intelligent, with many quiet character moments, but also with numerous magnificently staged action sequences, "Carlos - Der Schakal" is a true epic in the best sense of the word. Who has the opportunity, should definitely watch the long version, because only here the film can fully play all its strengths. But also the shorter version can please thanks to the strong actors and the captivating production. Absolutely worth seeing
Ein Artikel von Frankfurt-Tipp
