No Fear, No Die

The mesmerizing Isaach de Bankolé and Alex Descas star in the under-seen second feature by celebrated director Claire Denis, an unflinching portrait of two Black immigrant men from Benin and French Antilles, scraping out a living through illegal cockfights in a restaurant basement on the outskirts of Paris. As their restaurateur partner, portrayed by French New Wave legend Jean-Claude Brialy, demands more violence and blood, bonds fray and tensions escalate out of control—all set to a slow-burning score by South African jazz great Abdullah Ibrahim. Inspired by the writings of postcolonial philosopher Frantz Fanon, No Fear, No Die viscerally evokes the psychic trauma and economic disenfranchisement inherited from the history of French colonization. Restored in 4K by The Film Desk/Pathé in 2022.