The Last Diamond

French film Le Dernier Diamant (The Last Diamond) is a thrilling caper about a thief trying to steal a mythical diamond by daringly conning its owner.

In Le Dernier Diamant, Simon, a thief released on parole who just can't stop himself from performing larceny with his favorite partner in crime Albert, played by Jean-François Stévenin. He agrees to orchestrate the biggest heist of his life, to steal the "Florentin." A 137 carat mythical diamond finally being brought out from private ownership to auction. To succeed, he must get close to Julia, a diamond expert, for whom the sale is of considerable personal importance.

Yvan Attal plays Simon, the cunning con-artist who just can not say "No" to daring theft of substantial difficulty. Julia is played by Bérénice Bejo, a beautiful, confident and smart auction dealer. The chemistry between the two actors is playful and quite engaging for the audience. Further, all supporting characters are unique enough to differentiate the film from just your average caper flick.

Le Dernier Diamant, which translates to The Last Diamond in English, has a heist especially expertly written and directed by Eric Barbier. The brunt of the beginning of the film lays the groundwork for the eventual complicated theft and interpersonal character development. It is funny, lighthearted and all-in-all an enjoyable romp of a film.

Interestingly the robbery occurs in the middle of the movie, rather than follow the stereotypical formula for a heist movie in which the con occurs in the last third of the film. After which Le Dernier Diamant's tone switches from comedic popcorn cinema to suspenseful drama. It takes a bit of a nosedive with this serious tone but maintains a solidly entertaining flick and commendable addition to the genre.

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If you can get over the initial quite unbelievable premise that auction dealer Julia (Berenice Bejo) would take up some sort of private contract with (impersonating) security consultant Simon (Yvan Attal) with absolutely minimal background checks and then not mention the arrangement at all with any of the board members of her company, you'll probably quite enjoy French heist film, The Last Diamond. Me, sorry it was a contrivance too far and so early in the film. It pretty much reduced everything that followed to the lowest common denominator.

It's a caper piece whose tone abruptly changes from jaunty to rather serious two - thirds of the way through the movie. Sometimes this sort of stuff can work in the best films (Bonnie and Clyde), but mostly it doesn't really hit the mark, as in this feature. Neither does the romantic angle believably happen with the 2 leads, who are competent in their roles, but lack any sort of passionate chemistry together.

It is usually interesting seeing how these Mission Impossible style burglaries and cons play out and things are not really different here. A mitigating factor though is it's never really made clear who's running the show. Every thing seems to hinge on Simon's planning and actions, but he doesn't seem to be a major player and we're never really sure what is motivating him to get back in the game. His buddy Albert (Jean - Francois Stevenin, didn't need to work hard to overcome Simon's initial (I've retired) reluctance.

The storyline attempts to set us up for some third act twists, that really feel more like run of the mill red herrings. There's nothing much unexpected here, though some punters, may appreciate the action quota, being dialled up a notch or two. Eric Barbier directs proceedings in a workmanlike manner and the Belgian locations are very appropriate, seeing Antwerp is often cited as being the "diamond capital" of the world. However though reasonable entertainment, The Last Diamond is a crime caper that is never any where near as polished, as it's titular subject.

I read the mediocre reviews but thought I would give it a chance. 30 minutes in and I was bored out of my mind. A ridiculous plot, zero chemistry between the main protagonists upon which the premise rests.

Couldn't watch anymore. Sorry.

History of theft of diamond too well organized which becomes more complicated at the end. Not credible but fun, if you don't count the dead.

I liked it as it did not get too dark, and this is a break from the common thriller fare. Energising score, perfect acting, writing and direction. Beholding the appearance and character of the female lead, absolutely beautiful, is escapism in itself. The story layers upon itself with not so predictable moves, where some parts are a little predictable. But hey, if one wants something light, a balance of predictability and innovation works well.

Thoroughly enjoyed this, and will be honing in on more French films as a result.