Daring escapes. High-stakes romantic encounters. Bloodless heists.
Yes, it’s a thriller, but the most exciting thing about Prime Video’s new film Freedom is that it’s actually based on a true story.
The new French language film has landed with a splash on screens, and stars Emily in Paris’s Lucas Bravo as the lead character.
Here’s what to know.
What’s it about?
It’s a high-stakes action thriller that is – even better – based on a real-life true story. Its hero: renowned French gangster Bruno Sulak. Working in the late 1970s and early 80s, Sulak was famous for orchestrating daring heists, all without firing a single shot.
In fact, he was known as the “gentleman bandit” and “the Arsene Lupin of jewellery” for conducting 19 audacious robberies across Paris and the surrounding region, and though he was caught, he had a knack of breaking out of jail.
Sulak also had a tail, in the form of George Moréas (Yvan Attal), a police commissioner who was determined to bring him to justice.
The film is set to bring all this to the screen, as well as the consequences of his actions. "As Moréas closes in, Sulak's escapes from prison become legendary, fuelled by a lust for freedom, and a burning desire for his lover Annie (Léa Luce Busato)," says the synopsis.
"Amidst the chaos of their criminal spree, Sulak and Annie become the ultimate symbols of defiance in the most exhilarating game of cat and mouse that gripped the nation."
Who stars in it?
Freedom stars some of France’s most notable actors. Top of the list is Sulak himself, who is played by Lucas Bravo.
Bravo himself is best known for playing the love interest, Gabriel, in Netflix series Emily in Paris. Born in 1988, he’s the son of former French footballer Daniel Bravo, and singer Eva. He first appeared on screen in 2013’s Sous le soleil de Saint Tropez, but recently appeared in the Oscar-nominated Mrs Harris Goes to Paris, and in the 2022 George Clooney and Julia Roberts film Ticket to Paradise.
He’s joined by Léa Luce Busato, who plays his love interest Annie. Though her parents come from Italy, Busato grew up in Metz and has been living in Paris for the last 10 years. She studied at the National Theatre School in Strasbourg, but is relatively new to the world of on-screen acting.
Rounding out the cast is Yvan Attal (who plays George Moréas), a French actor, scriptwriter and director. He’s been acting since 1989, when his appearance in Éric Rochant's Un monde sans pitié (1989) earned him a César Award. Since then, he’s also segued into directing, directing his partner Charlotte Gainsbourg in 2001’s Ma femme est une actrice.
When is it out?
The film is out now on Prime Video.
