The Measure of a Man

If this were an American film, focusing as it does on a hard-luck working-class protagonist toiling as a department store security guard, it would likely be a silly slapstick comedy starring Kevin James. But this quietly simmering French indie feature treats its working-class milieu not as figures of fun but as sentient multi-dimensional human beings. Director Stéphane Brizé squeezes optimum pathos from a simple premise: fifty-something Thierry (Vincent Lindon) has just been laid off from his machinist job and he quickly becomes caught in the grinding gears of not just the French welfare system but also an economy in transition, where manufacturing jobs are giving way to temp and part-time service sector work. World-weary family man Thierry is put through the ringer of training for jobs he has no aptitude for, but finally lands a low-level gig as a rent-a-cop, who is required to not only catch shoplifters but also help monitor fellow store employees. Although he initially seems meekly content in his new security position, Thierry's mettle is tested when the petty store authorities make him take part in ruining the lives of a few store clerks for little more than nicking a few discount coupons while on the job. A timely drama, this is recommended. (M. Sandlin)