Marion Cotillard is playing Nicole
English title: n/a

Directed by Lionel Bailliu Written by Lionel Bailliu Genre Thriller Tagline En business comme en sport, tous les coups sont permis (In business, as in sport, all shots are allowed) Theatrical Release France: 06/09/2006 DVD Release France: 10/05/2007 Starring Benoît Magimel, Eric Savin, Jean-Pierre Cassel, Jérémie Renier, Malcolm Conrath, Marion Cotillard, Mélanie Doutey

• News Updates • Photo Gallery • Video Clips • Official site • IMDb • Buy French DVD • Buy DVD R1 • Buy DVD R2

A compulsively domineering boss, a hell-bent careerist of a new recruit, a calculating and Machiavellian executive, and an employee who’s too much of a victim to be honest settle their scores on the sports field. Sweat mixes with underhand maneuvers, sportsmanlike domination turns into harassment, and physical stamina becomes a protection against dismissal… Rowing, squash, fitness trail, golf, canyoning, the nest of vipers continues to vent its venom until masks and men fall.

Marion Cotillard plays the insecure secretary Nicole. Although sexually harassed by her boss Charles and stalked by a collegue during her Sunday jogging she is not at all only the innocent victim. During the canyoning the situation with her boss comes to a dangerous showdown.

• Filming Locations: Film studios Barrandov, Prague (Czech Republic), Gorges du Loup & la Clue de la Cerise, near Nice (France)
• This is the longer version of Academy Award-nominated and award-winning short film Squash (2002) by same director Lionel Bailiu. The opening scene of the feature reproduces the entirety of the short, but with different actors (Malcolm Conrath and Eric Savin for the short, Jérémie Rénier and Eric Savin for the feature)
• Production started May 17, 2005 in Prague and finished 41 days later
• Was shown at the 2007 Philadelphia Film Festival

A pitch-black look at careerism gone wild is set not in the predictable environs of an office but in a more natural setting of rocky cliffs and waterfalls where it is far easier to humiliate -- or maim -- a colleague. Lionel Bailliu's compelling Fair Play is a movie that initially surprises and then, with an almost relentless drive, continues to astonish, amaze and even shock with an obstinate refusal to conform to expectations. Bailliu directs with an in-your-face confidence, pulling us into what seems like a black comedy but which turns out to be so much more, disturbingly so. The film opens with a ferocious, 20-minute racquetball sequence that's pure cinema bravura, nearly perspiring testosterone and setting the tone for the series of set pieces that follow. The evil joy of Fair Play is that it doesn't play fair at all, especially not with the audience.
Philadelphia Fillm Festival

The film's concept to dissect the relationships between colleagues only in sports scenes rather than in the office is intriguing. Unfortunately, as a whole it feels like a film experiment. Yet, it works well. The first 4 scenes set the tone and the positions for the 5th - the canyoning scene develops into a thriller. The tension really is there, I felt like I was right there in the water with the cast. I also enjoyed seeing Marion in a different role, her Nicole is timid and insecure yet also dishonest and selfish. It is a very physical role, and it was nice seeing that Marion is very fit. The film relies heavily on dialogues which I unfortunately didn't understand all. Although I do not wish to view this film a 3rd time - it shows the worst sides of humans - I might do so, just to try to understand the characters and their problems better.
by Maria