Les mauvais joueurs

Gamblers
Paris has its sweatshops too. This film is set in a part of town where there are still plenty of these medium-sized businesses to be found, where men and women work extremely hard in return for a tiny wage.
It’s almost Christmas and things have taken a decidedly downward turn in Vahé Krikorian’s life. The shop where Vahé works belongs to his father – but he will soon have to close on account of too many debts and unpaid bills. Lu Ann, the woman with whom Vahé is in love, has already left the business. Vehé is all too aware that he’s not going to get very far with the card trick that he’s been pulling with Sahak and his brother, Toros.
And then, one day, Lu Ann’s brother, Yuen, appears. Yuen has no identity papers; he has come to France as an illegal immigrant and is now refusing to work for the human traffickers that smuggled him into the country. Realising just how dangerous things can get for Yuen, Vahé decides to help him.
Yuen and Vahé come into contact with each other and, day by day, their friendship grows. Vahé’s new friendship sorely tries his feelings of loyalty to his old buddies and, eventually, he decides to turn his back on them.
It looks as if life might go on as usual, but this is far from the case. Something has klicked inside Vahé. Something that is beyond his control. Something irreparable…
by Frédéric Balekdjian
with Pascal Elbé, Simon Abkarian, Isaac Sharry
France 2004 85’

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