It is refreshing to read the coral of praises sung by the press, ranging from “muscled action, a hellish rhythm, sublime photography” (Télé 7 Jours) to “a French blockbuster, unique in its genre, of a rare hysteria and efficiency, without however eclipsing the inevitable human part as to achieve a minimum of wanted realism.”Excessif via “In costume, Tomer Sisley confirms he has the broad shoulders of the millionaire warrior and in his role of the butler, Nicolas Vaude shows he has the necessary humour to add some punch to this cocktail of adventure, glamour and French stock exchange.” (StudioCinéLive), also “Jérôme ’Winch’ Salle learned his James Bond well. It would be indelicate to fault him for this, or to reduce him to this (…) Bringing together Laurent Terzieff, Tomer Sisley and Sharon Stone in an action flick, someone just had to think of it…” (Brazil, a reference in the field).
The promotion is an essential element of a film’s reception, and we can only praise Tomer Sisley for his efforts as he was omnipresent on television shows, likeable, charming, listening, smiling. Handsome, that too. Coiffed with a nice hat with quite some trend-potential, he didn’t hesitate to take a Thalys train to spend two hours in Brussels, at the RTBF’s Ciné Station , where he shared his surprising personal career path and his passion for film and for life in general.
However, when talking an investment by Wallimage or Wallimage/Bruxellimage, the key concern is the financial return for the relevant regions (in this case both Wallonia and Brussels) and the booming industry on our territory. On the occasion of a very recent preview of the film in Charleroi, we witnessed another phenomenon: how the arrival of a film set in an often disregarded city provokes a wave of pride for all those who, from up close or from afar, approached the stars and saw some of the crazy stunts filmed here. The making of of the pursuit scene filmed on the Carsid site will impress many who have not yet seen this exotic cocktail of action and tension.
A film’s commercial career is the sprinkles on the icing for Wallimage. A box-office hit can help bring in extra money for the regional market, but also helps promoting the image of Wallonia and Brussels through success stories.
So, how can we NOT jump from joy when in France, after the first week, Largo Winch 2 takes the second place at the box-office, with nearly 600,000 tickets sold, right behind … Nothing to Declare? In Belgium, Jérôme Salle’s electroshock comes third, behind Dany Boon’s new hit and another Wallimage success, Rundskop.
And thus concludes our good news show!
