A bank robbery, the kidnapping of an old president, and “the escape of the century.” In I was gangsta Philippe Lacroix, the mastermind of the Haemers gang, tells himself about his life. It is a journalistic production, so some distance from the story, a critical attitude that avoids glorification, is required. Unfortunately, the voice-over that supplements Lacroix’s home recordings sometimes takes you out of the story: you prefer to hang on to the lips of the master criminal himself.
Still, it’s interesting to hear how practical considerations on the riskiest actions were for Lacroix, or how the criminal activities became part of his marriage. It gets really interesting when the journalists talk to each other. How much regret does Lacroix really have?
Lacroix. I was gangsta4 episodes of approx. 40 min, De Standaard.
A version of this article also appeared in the newspaper of February 11, 2023