Set in the Parisian suburbs, La Haine follows the story of three inseparable friends: Hubert, played by Hubert Koundé; Vinz, played by Vincent Cassel; and Saïd, played by Saïd Taghmaoui. The film documents the 20 hours following a protest that arose due to an episode of abuse of power against Abdel Ichaha, a young Arab friend of the three who was beaten so brutally by the police that he ended up in a coma. Director and screenwriter Kassovitz began writing the script for La Haine on April 6, 1993, the day on which 17-year-old French-Congolese Makomé M'Bowole was shot and killed by the Parisian police. M'Bowole had been arrested on suspicion of stealing cigarettes, and was one of three unarmed youths killed by Paris police in the space of just four days. La Haine was born to shed light on institutional violence, systemic racism and the fragility of national identity within the French context, but it is an issue that is widespread throughout the world.
(Source: Vice)