The main actor of the movie “Taxi” Sami Naseri became a screen star at a fairly mature age, having experienced in his youth an excessive passion for the romance of the underworld and imprisonment. In addition to the legendary tetralogy of Luc Besson, the Frenchman has participated in several other successful projects, for which he was even awarded prestigious awards of national film festivals. However, the actor Nasseri did not correct with age, remaining in his soul a teenager from the disadvantaged areas of the Paris suburbs. He often came into conflict with the law and spent time several times in a prison cell.
Said's childhood
Said Naseri, whose biography will be described below, was born in 1961 in Paris. He will take the nickname himself later, becoming a movie star. He grew up in a family of native Frenchwoman Jacqueline Leroux and Algerian immigrant Djilali Nasseri. One of the many brothers Said Larbi also became an actor later. He is known to the public as Bibi Naseri.
When Said was seven years old, his family left Paris and moved to the suburbs of Fontenay-Sault-Bois. The guy grew up a real tomboy, sometimes his antics crossed the line of innocent youthful amusements. The difficult financial situation of his parents led to constant conflicts, and he often did not spend the night at home, spending most of the time on the streets. At sixteen, Said dropped out of school and made contact with the world of drug dealers, scammers, and thieves. Until a certain point, he managed to balance on the verge of the law, but at the age of eighteen he got caught in the robbery of a store and thundered in prison. The court sentenced the future actor Naseri to five years in prison, but he managed to be released four years later due to good behavior.
Movie career
In 1980, an incorrigible teenager accidentally became a member of the crowd on the set of the comedy Inspector Open. The world of movie cameras, spotlights and beautiful actresses bewitched the soul of Said, and he set himself the goal of becoming the real actor.
However, the scandalous reputation and the prison past greatly prevented Sami Nasseri from becoming the new star of French cinema. In the eighties, he interrupted by tiny episodes and flickering in the crowd, not even receiving the instructions in the credits.
In 1994, a landmark event took place in the biography of Sami Naseri. He got a cameo role in the final frames of the film "Leon" by Luc Besson. However, the venerable director kept in mind the charismatic native of the Parisian suburbs and a few years later invited him to star in the lead role in his new film.
Breakthrough
The position of the actor Nasseri radically changed in the mid-nineties. The son of an Algerian immigrant got a major role in the television movie Brothers: Red Roulette. Here he brought to life the image of an Arab teenager from a Parisian suburb, who got involved with a bad company and chose a crooked path in life. Sami Naseri often said that he played in this picture, in fact, of himself, because of this, the presentation of the eternal history turned out to be very convincing in his performance.
Sami does not stand still and develops its success. A year later, he gets the opportunity to star in the tragicomic film "Paradise" directed by Tom Gilu. Here Sami Naseri again plays the role of an outcast who is experiencing huge problems with social adaptation. The new work of the actor was favorably received by critics, and he received his first cinematic awards. At the Locarno festival, he received the Golden Leopard Award, and also received a special award from the Paris Film Festival.
"Taxi"
In 1997, actor Naseri pulled out his lucky lottery ticket, which became the role of taxi driver Daniel in Luc Besson's new project. "Taxi" - a picture that was rather coldly received by film critics. They reproached the film for an incoherent plot, but the audience was delighted. A fun, reckless comedy thriller about the adventures of a taxi driver Daniel collected cash in cinemas not only in France, but around the world.
As in his previous paintings, Sami Naseri again played a character close to himself in spirit. A guy from the suburbs who loves speed and powerful cars and is in conflict with the police is the eternal alter ego of his son Jilali Nasseri. For his work in this film, the actor received the Cesar Award as the best actor of the year.
Hollywood movie bigwigs, experiencing a crisis of ideas, once again bought the rights to film adaptation from the French and shot their own version of the film. Even the Indians released their own version. Wanting to make the most of the popularity of Taxi, Luc Besson shot three more parts of a successful franchise, but each time it got worse. As a result, the film "Taxi 4" was the last series of tetralogy.
Other films
After the role of taxi driver Daniel, Samy Naceri became one of the most popular actors in France and regularly starred in new films. Of his subsequent works, it is worth noting the role in the film "Patriots" directed by Rashid Bushareb. Here he played the soldier Yasser, who, together with his comrades, opposed superior enemy forces, defending a small village in one of the battles of World War II.
In the picture of Rashid Bashareb, among other things, the topic of discrimination against soldiers of Arab origin in the French army in the first half of the twentieth century was raised. Sami Naseri adequately coped with the new challenge in his professional career and won the silver award at the 2006 Cannes Film Festival.
Problems with law
The difficult nature of Sami did not go away after the arrival of popularity, and he often came into conflict with the law. In 2003, he was deprived of his rights and sentenced to six months in prison for beating a driver who refused to let him pass on the road.
In 2008, the actor hit a woman while driving while intoxicated, for which he again spent six months in prison. In 2011, Sami Naseri was in serious trouble after the story of stabbing in a fight. He got off relatively easily, having received a term of one and a half years, but after his release he did not improve, continuing to get into various situations.