Dog 51
| Dog 51 | |
|---|---|
Theatrical release poster | |
| French | Chien 51 |
| Directed by | Cédric Jimenez |
| Screenplay by |
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| Based on | Chien 51 by Laurent Gaudé |
| Produced by | Hugo Sélignac |
| Starring | |
| Cinematography | Laurent Tangy |
| Edited by |
|
| Music by | Guillaume Roussel |
Production companies |
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| Distributed by | Studiocanal |
Release dates |
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Running time | 105 minutes[1] |
| Countries |
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| Language | French |
| Budget | €40–50 million |
| Box office | $11 million |
Dog 51 (French: Chien 51) is a 2025 science fiction thriller film directed by Cédric Jimenez and written by Jimenez and Olivier Demangel based on the 2022 novel by the same name by Laurent Gaudé. Starring Gilles Lellouche, Adèle Exarchopoulos, Louis Garrel, Romain Duris, Valeria Bruni Tedeschi and Artus, it follows a crime investigation in a dystopian Paris.
The film had its world premiere out of competition at the 82nd Venice International Film Festival on 6 September 2025, and was theatrically released in France on 15 October by Studiocanal in IMAX formats.
Plot
The film is set in a dystopian future, in 2045, in Paris, where people have been segregated into neighborhoods by social class, and police are directed by an artificial intelligence system. When the creator of the system is murdered, investigators Salia and Zem work to solve the case, and in doing so discover alarming information about the authority that governs them.[2][3][4]
Cast
- Gilles Lellouche as Zem Brecht
- Adèle Exarchopoulos as Salia Malberg
- Louis Garrel as Jon Mafram
- Romain Duris as Théo Rimarval
- Valeria Bruni Tedeschi as Irina Mitrovna
- Artus as Malik Bouzid
- Stéphane Bak as Cal
- Thomas Bangalter as Kessel
Production
An international co-production between France and Belgium, filming took place in Paris and Marseille over eighteen weeks,[2] with an estimated production budget is €40–50 million.[5][6]
Release
The film debuted at the 82nd Venice International Film Festival on 6 September 2025.[2][7][8] For its North American premiere, the film was programmed as a special presentation at the 2025 Toronto International Film Festival.[9] It was released in French theaters on 15 October 2025.[3][10]
Reception
Box office
The film had 1.38 million admissions at the French box office,[11] grossing $11 million against a budget of €40 million.[12]
It was the fourth most popular French film of 2025, behind Jean-Paul Rouve's God Save The Tuche, Ken Scott's Once Upon My Mother and Franck Dubosc's How to Make a Killing.[11]
Critical response
Screen Daily's critic Lee Marshall found the film to be an engaging near-future dystopian thriller infusing "Parisian romance, energy and sex appeal" into police crime drama tropes and elements derivative of the Blade Runner and The Hunger Games. He praised the chemistry between Lellouche and Exarchopoulos, and described the world-building and the narrative's pacing as efficient. While describing the film as accessible entertainment and "by no means an arthouse movie", he remarked that some themes might find better resonance in France than internationally.[13]
See also
References
- ^ "Dog 51 [M]". Australian Classification Board. 4 February 2026. Retrieved 5 February 2026.
- ^ a b c Roxborough, Scott (29 August 2025). "Cédric Jimenez on 'Dog 51,' French Sci-Fi, and Pitting Real Actors Against AI". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 6 September 2025.
- ^ a b "Chien 51: futuristic thriller with Gilles Lellouche and Adèle Exarchopoulos". Sortira Paris. 16 May 2025. Retrieved 6 September 2025.
- ^ Keslassy, Elsa (16 May 2025). "Studiocanal Drops Teaser for Cedric Jimenez's Dystopian Thriller 'Chien 51' Starring Adèle Exarchopoulos, Gilles Lellouche (EXCLUSIVE)". Variety. Retrieved 6 September 2025.
- ^ "Le plus gros film français de 2025 sera présenté en avant-première au Festival de Venise". Canal Plus (in French). 22 July 2025.
- ^ Delcroix, Olivier (14 October 2025). "Notre critique de Chien 51, un Blade Runner à la française". Le Figaro (in French).
- ^ "À la Mostra, Cédric Jimenez et son "Chien 51" divisent : dystopie spectaculaire ou thriller bourrin ?". www.telerama.fr (in French). 7 September 2025. Retrieved 7 September 2025.
- ^ "Nous avons vu « Chien 51 », le film français le plus attendu de l'année". parismatch.com (in French). 7 September 2025. Retrieved 7 September 2025.
- ^ Goodfellow, Melanie (10 September 2025). "Gilles Lellouche Talks Embracing Action & Sci-Fi In TIFF Title 'Dog 51' Ahead Of Tackling Resistance Hero Jean Moulin". Deadline Hollywood.
- ^ Fair, La rédaction de Vanity (19 May 2025). "Cannes Film Festival: Lacoste Celebrates Cédric Jimenez's 'Chien 51'". Vanity Fair. Retrieved 6 September 2025.
- ^ a b "Five national films record over a million ticket sales in France in 2025". Cineuropa - the best of european cinema. 7 January 2026. Retrieved 8 January 2026.
- ^ "Dog 51". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved 8 January 2026.
- ^ Marshall, Lee (6 September 2025). "'Dog 51' review: Cedric Jimenez's high-octane thriller is set in a near-future Paris". Screen Daily. Retrieved 7 September 2025.