MESRINE double bill swaggers onto UK DVD and Blu-ray

Who'd have thought the director of the pointless and forgettable Assault On Precinct 13 remake could turn out such a thoroughly entertaining crime epic. Doubt ye not though because  Jean-François Richet's biopic of the self-aggrandising French bank robber, jail-breaker, womaniser and author is a belter of a crime thriller.

Both Killer Instinct (pt1) and Public Enemy Number 1 (pt 2) manage to be gripping, action-packed and very funny for a combined running time of nearly 4 hours. This in no small part is down to a hugely charismatic Vincent Cassel, carrying more bravado as Jacques Mesrine (pronounced May-reen...) than the entire cast of Goodfellas, shooting, shagging and posturing his way across Algeria, France and Canada. The supporting cast add some more colour to proceedings with the frankly stunning Ludivine Sagnier and The Diving Bell And The Butterfly's Mathieu Amalric (as fellow inmate Francois Besse) standing out. The ever-reliable Gerard Depardieu is also on form as an aging mob boss.

The first film is the more action-oriented, whilst the second traces Mesrine's cocky relationship with the press and his burgeoning celebrity status. Appropriately, given the real Mesrine's character, there's a certain tongue-in-cheek approach to the material with no-one, on screen or otherwise, quite able to take the Frenchman's antics seriously.

 Mesrine Parts 1 and 2 are out on UK DVD and Blu-ray from 25th Jan 2010.