''Le Premier Cercle'' (, ''The First Circle''), also known as ''Inside Ring'' and ''The Dead List'' in

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

and as ''Ultimate Heist'' on

USA The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

video, is a 2009 French-language film by

Laurent Tuel Laurent Tuel (born 1966) is a French film actor, director and writer. Career Laurent Tuel released his first short film "Céleste" in 1989, when he was 23. In 2007 he was nominated for César Awards The César Award is the national film awar ...

. It tells the story of Milo Malakian (

Jean Reno Jean Reno () (born 30 July 1948), is a French actor. He has worked in American, French, English, Japanese, Spanish and Italian movie productions; Reno appeared in films such as ''Crimson Rivers'', ''Godzilla'', ''The Da Vinci Code'', '' Mission: ...

), a gang leader in

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

, and his son Anton, the descendants of

Armenian genocide The Armenian genocide was the systematic destruction of the Armenians in the Ottoman Empire, Armenian people and identity in the Ottoman Empire during World War I. Spearheaded by the ruling Committee of Union and Progress (CUP), it was ...

survivors. Having been co-produced by Thelma Films and Alter Films, this thriller formerly called ''Riviera'' was co-written by the scriptwriters Laurent Tuel, Laurent Turner and Simon Moutaïrou.Jean Reno encerclé par Laurent Tuel, 19 Octobre 2007
/ref> Production companies include TF1 and

Canal+ Canal+ (Canal Plus, , meaning 'Channel Plus'; sometimes abbreviated C+ or Canal) is a French premium television channel launched in 1984. It is 100% owned by the Groupe Canal+, which in turn is owned by Vivendi. The channel broadcasts several ki ...

. According to producer

Alain Terzian Alain Terzian (born 2 May 1949) is a French-Armenian film producer, Administrator of Cannes Film Festival jury, and former President of Académie des Arts et Techniques du Cinéma. He is the chief executive officer of ''Alter Films'' and the Pre ...

, the surname of the film's hero, Malakian, was chosen in regard of film director

Henri Verneuil Henri Verneuil (; born Ashot Malakian; 15 October 1920 – 11 January 2002) was a French-Armenian playwright and filmmaker, who made a successful career in France. He was nominated for Oscar and Palme d'Or awards, and won Locarno International Fi ...

, a friend of Terzian.

Cast

as ''Milo Malakian'' *

Gaspard Ulliel Gaspard Thomas Ulliel (; 25 November 198419 January 2022) was a French actor. He was known for having portrayed the young Hannibal Lecter in ''Hannibal Rising'' (2007), fashion designer Yves Saint Laurent in the biopic '' Saint Laurent'' (2014 ...

as ''Anton Malakian'' *

Vahina Giocante Vahina Giocante (born 30 June 1981) is a French actress. Career As ''Marie'' in '' Marie Baie des Anges'' (1997), she is among a group of young wanderers who become enmeshed in love, hate, and violence on the French Riviera. In 1999 she appe ...

as ''Elodie'' *

Sami Bouajila Sami Bouajila (born 26 May 1966) is a French actor who has won two César Awards. Bouajila has worked and acted in two Oscar nominated films ('' Days of Glory'' and '' Outside the Law''), both directed by director Rachid Bouchareb. Early life B ...

as ''Saunier''

References

External links

* * *
Notes de Prod. : Le Premier cercle, Entretien avec Jean Reno, 2009
*

at AlloCiné *

at Canalplus French crime action films 2009 films Films set in France Armenian genocide films French gangster films Films about organized crime in France 2000s French films {{Armenia-genocide-stub