Dris is an ex-con, living in the borderline between a decent and a criminal life. He has a regular and simple work and lives a simple life with his wife Lise and loves his family. However, his childhood friends from his Arab community, including his best friend Yanis, are mobsters and his brother is a small time delinquent. Yanis tries to bring Dris back to his gang, and uses his former lover Nina to seduce him, taking him to expensive places to feel the importance of big money. Dris fights against the temptation, but an event will route him back to Yanis' gang and in a fight between gangs with tragic consequences for the whole community.
Acting
Naceri's charm masks genuine menace — you get why Dris falls
Direction
Boursinhac's banlieue feels lived-in, not exoticized tourist poverty
Writing
Nina isn't just temptation — she's Dris's unchosen life haunting him
Director
Manuel Boursinhac
Samy Naceri
Yanis
Samuel Le Bihan
Dris
Clotilde Courau
Nina
Michel Duchaussoy
Fèche
Philippe Nahon
Simon
Francis Renaud
Niglo
Marie Guillard
Lise
Bibi Naceri
Rouquin
Elisabeth Margoni
Evelyne
Lucien Jean-Baptiste
Foued
Frédéric Pellegeay
Grib
Adrien Saint-Joré
José
David Saracino
Mel
Jean-Pierre Lazzerini
Henry
Stéphane Ferrara
Prosper
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Samy Naceri was already famous from 'Taxi' — this was his deliberate 'serious actor' pivot that French audiences largely rejected.
The 'code' of the title refers to omertà-style silence, but the film quietly argues that code is what keeps banlieue residents from ever actually leaving.
FR
