Beau Travail

Beau Travail follows Galoup, a former senior sergeant in the French Foreign Legion, as he looks back on his time at an outpost near the Gulf of Djibouti. His days there were shaped by strict routine and training, and he was devoted to his commander, Bruno Forestier. That order is unsettled by the arrival of Gilles Sentain, a capable young recruit who draws the commander's attention and stirs jealousy in Galoup.

Claire Denis directed the film and wrote the screenplay with Jean-Pol Fargeau. Released in 2000, it is the third of the 15 features she has directed, coming after Nenette and Boni and before Trouble Every Day. Denis Lavant plays Galoup, with Michel Subor as Commander Forestier and Grégoire Colin as Sentain. The story draws loosely on Herman Melville's Billy Budd, transposed to a Legion camp in peacetime.

On IMDb the film holds a 7.3 rating from around 18,000 votes, while on TMDB it stands at 7.1 from roughly 379 votes. A critics' rating of 7.9 from 47 reviews places it above both audience scores.