Le Faux Soir

The histories of the resistance movements in German-occupied Europe are full of courageous acts of heroism. Yet few are as cunning or surprising as the events captured in this fleet-footed and thoroughly entertaining thriller by Belgian director Michaël R. Roskam.

Inspired by the true story of a uniquely daring operation in Brussels in November of 1943, Le Faux Soir follows a group of resistance fighters as they proceed step-by-step through a scheme that the Nazis in charge most definitely did not see coming. These crafty conspirators’ goal: to turn the Germans’ propaganda tools against them by printing and distributing a spoof edition of the newspaper Le Soir. 

Unlike most pranks, this one all but guarantees the execution of any perpetrator who gets captured. With every challenge and setback comes yet more risks for an unlikely array of allies that includes Marc “Yvon” Aubrion (Arieh Worthalter), an anarchist poet whose unruly ways may prove to be an advantage in a plan that demands so much improvisation and ingenuity.

A director who first broke out internationally with his Academy Award–nominated first feature Bullhead (2011) and who was last at the Festival with Racer and the Jailbird (2017), Roskam makes terrific use of a superb cast that also features Belgian and French stars Mélanie Thierry, Bouli Lanners, and Karim Leklou.

Together, they display the same grace under pressure as the real people who inspired them, delivering a historical drama that has all the pace and panache of a classic heist movie.

JASON ANDERSON

Content advisory: violence