AKA (2023): ‘AKA’ is a new French-language action thriller streaming on Netflix. Directed by Morgan S. Dalibert, the script follows a special ops agent named Adam Franco, who infiltrates a criminal organization for a secret mission. He forms a strong relationship with the mob boss’s young son. By the end of his assigned mission, he starts questioning its morality.
The film stars Alban Lenoir in the lead role, who is known for Lost Bullet and its sequel, which was released last year (Morgan was a cinematographer for both these films). The film also stars Eric Cantona, Noé Chabbat, Kevin Layne, Saïdou Camara, Lucille Guillaume, Thibault de Montalembert, Philippe Résimont, Svava Alviti, Nicolas Duvauchelle, and Ramzy Bedia.
*Spoilers Ahead*
AKA (2023) Plot Summary & Movie Synopsis:
In Libya, Adam Franco (Alban Lenoir) is taken prisoner and held captive in a cage next to Sonia Gautier (Aude Le Pape). He soon gets out, kills all those that brought him there, and then shoots Sonia. After this action-filled introduction, we see news about an attack on the Etoile Hotel from Paris, France. Moktar Al Tayeb (Kevin Layne) is considered an alleged perpetrator. Minister Marconnet (Philippe Résimont) gets concerned since Moktar is a Sudanese resident who is believed to be a warlord.
In reality, Marconnet had invited Moktar to France. He tries to hide this information not to have any connection to a supposed terrorist and to save his face. He summons Kruger (Thibault de Montalembert), his head of intelligence, to find Moktar at the earliest. Since Moktar is closely connected with a criminal named Victor Pastor (Eric Cantona), Kruger plans to infiltrate Victor’s syndicate. For this task, he assigns Adam and tells him not to use any alias since it is a time-sensitive operation. He says that Moktar was an ally of France before changing sides twelve years ago.
Adam is supposed to make Victor trust him enough to spill the beans. To do that, Adam blackmails a member of Victor’s syndicate named Jacques, who hires new people. It brings him to Victor’s notice, who then hires him. Adam soon learns about Victor’s rival named, Amet, who is trying to enter Victor’s territory of business. He proves himself reliable for Victor’s security by dealing with a banker and then taking care of Amet’s goons sent to Victor’s nightclub to create havoc.
It brings Adam to the notice of Victor’s wife, Natalya (Sveta Alviti), who runs that nightclub. She thanks him for his service and then asks him to take her son Jonathan (Noé Chabbat) to school. Later, Adam is told as per Kruger’s orders to put a tracker on Victor’s car. Meanwhile, Adam’s reckless beating from the nightclub makes Victor discover his past background. So, he hires Adam as Jonathan’s bodyguard. In Jonathan’s school, Adam saves him from getting beat up by his bullies, and it helps them bond well together.
Jonathan’s sister, Helene (Lucille Guillaume), discovers Adam’s past, where he committed the cold-blooded murder of a court member. So, she is unsure about Adam being so close to her younger brother. Turns out, that person had raped his younger brother, and Adam was trying to get revenge.
Later, during Jonathan’s birthday party, Adam tries to bug Victor’s office to record his conversations. Victor walks into the room and finds Adam sitting under his table. Luckily, Adam covers it up by revealing that he was playing hide-and-seek with young Jonathan.
Before leaving, Adam removes the bug from the most obvious place but still hides it in the vicinity so his associates – Mona and Cisko, can hear Victor’s conversations. They intercept Moktar and Victor’s dialogue about an operation that is supposed to be executed the next day. Meanwhile, Moktar goes through flashbacks from the Hotel where his family was attacked out of nowhere.
Adam joins Pee Wee and other men from Victor’s crew for an operation. The men rob a bank and return to the van. Adam starts driving them away and soon gets ambushed by Amet’s men. Victor’s men get injured but get rescued, thanks to Adam. Meanwhile, Marconnet gets worried about a possible terrorist attack by Muktar. So, he tells Kruger to capture him at the earliest.
Adam figures out that Natalya informed Amet about Victor’s bank robbery plan. He is worried that Victor will soon find out about it as well. So, he gives her some money so that she can run away. Amet accuses her of double-crossing him since Adam is a secret ops agent. Since Adam, Cisko, and Mona knocked out all his men, he kidnaps Jonathan as revenge. He asks for a lofty ransom in exchange for letting go of her son. But Victor refuses to pay since Jonathan is not his biological son and also because of ego.
On the other hand, Adam decides to infiltrate Amet’s HQ on his own to rescue Jonathan. After clearing out Amet’s men, he reaches the room where Jonathan is held captive. He denies Amet’s offer for the money, shoots Amet, and drives Jonathan safely back home. However, in the process, Adam gets severely hurt and is brought to a hospital. While he is unconscious, he has flashbacks from the time he murdered a court member. Kruger asked him to be his agent in exchange for escaping jail time.
Muktar stands outside Marconnet’s house with a threat warning. While he starts panicking, Adam regains consciousness and checks a surveillance video featuring Moktar. He texts Kruger that the delivery will be done within 24 days. Outside, he gets caught by a few cops. He saves himself by sharing his serial number. One of Victor’s men notices that interaction from a distance and realizes that Adam is fed. Helene meets Adam and offers to heal his wounds.
AKA (2023) Movie Ending, Explained:
What makes Adam Franco question his morality?
Marconnet calls Kruger to his house and shares a photo that Muktar left in an envelope on his porch. It features a photo that shows them holding hands during their peace-offering meeting. Kruger gets a message from Mona saying Adam is caught and Cisko is unreachable. Cisko was earlier injured trying to help Adam. Meanwhile, Adam finds Moktar’s location. He meets Moktar and Asaan (Saïdou Camara) and shoots Moktar in his knee. He holds them at gunpoint to know about their operation and why they needed money.
Turns out, Moktar wanted to get a procedure done on his daughter, who was heavily injured during the hotel attack – the one that he was held responsible for. Luckily, thanks to the operation’s success, his daughter will live. Since Adam considered him to be a threat to his country, Moktar reveals how Marconnet asked him to come to France to discuss a cease-fire in South Sudan. In the 1980s, the French were hailed for helping the Sudanese gain freedom. In reality, they exploited the country for their gain of black gold.
What happens to Moktar at the end of Adam’s mission?
It changes Adam’s view about his mission, and he decides not to shoot Moktar. Asaan says how a man like him hurt Moktar’s daughter. By then, some of Kruger’s team arrive at the scene, as per Marconnet’s orders, and end up killing Moktar. Adam helps Asaan rescue from the latter ambush. Asaan drives Adam away, and both of their lives are saved. Mona is meanwhile killed, and Helene is arrested. Victor sips his drink after killing Natalya. Eventually, he gets killed by Kruger.
What happens to Jonathan and Helene?
Later, a photo of Marconnet and Muktar (the same one he receives in an envelope on his porch) gets published in a newspaper. It calls him a terrorist for his ‘Shady ties with a Moktar Al Tayeb.’ Adam puts Jonathan into child protective services. Once Helene leaves the prison, she calls their office but cannot get access without a serial number. So, she gets in touch with Adam. He meets her on a bus and brings Jonathan with him. Kruger sits in the backseat, intent on killing Helene. Instead, Adam kills him and then sits next to Helene. It looks like he has decided to switch seats since he wants to be on the right side of history.
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