Le grand voyage (2004)

Director:

Ismaël Ferroukhi

Writer:

Ismaël Ferroukhi (writer)

Release Date:

24 November 2004 (France)

Genre:

Drama

Plot:

Reda, a young French-Moroccan guy and his old father drive from the south of France to Mecca in order for the father to do his pilgrimage. At first distant, they gradually learn to know each other.

Plot Keywords:

Mecca | Pilgrimage | French Moroccan | Conman | Picnic

Awards:

Nominated for BAFTA Film Award. Another 4 wins & 2 nominations

Cast

  (Cast overview, first billed only)

Nicolas Cazalé	...	Reda
Mohamed Majd	...	The Father
Jacky Nercessian	...	Mustapha
Ghina Ognianova	...	La vieille femme
Kamel Belghazi	...	Khalid
Atik Mohamed	...	Le pélerin Ahmad
Malika Mesrar El Hadaoui	...	La mère
François Baroni	...	Le douanier italien
Krassi Kpacu	...	Le douanier serbe
Kirill Kavadarkov	...	Le barman yougoslave
Blajo Wymenski	...	L'homme du change
Diyan Machev	...	L'homme bavard (as Dean Matchev)
Erol Atac	...	Douanier turc 1 (as Erol Ataç)
Sadik Deveci	...	Douanier turc 2
Nihat Nikerel	...	Chef policier turc

Also Known As:

Runtime:

108 min

Country:

France | Morocco

Language:

Bulgarian | French | Arabic | English | Italian | Turkish | Serbian

Color:

Color

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

UK:PG | Singapore:PG | Brazil:10 (Rio de Janeiro International Film Festival) | Brazil:Livre | Malaysia:(Banned) | Netherlands:AL | Switzerland:10 (canton of Geneva) | Switzerland:10 (canton of Vaud) | Argentina:Atp | Ireland:PG

Filming Locations:

Aix-en-Provence, Bouches-du-Rhône, France

Company:

Ognon Pictures

Quotes:

Reda:Why didn't you fly to Mecca? It's a lot simpler.
The Father:When the waters of the ocean rise to the heavens, they lose their bitterness to become pure again...
Reda:What?
The Father:The ocean waters evaporate as they rise to the clouds. And as they evaporate they become fresh. That's why it's better to go on your pilgrimage on foot than on horseback, better on horseback than by car, better by car than by boat, better by boat than by plane.

Movie Connections:

Featured in Humbert Balsan, producteur rebelle (2006) (TV)

A Nutshell Review: Le Grand Voyage

You'd think you're in for some serious sightseeing when the premise of the movie takes place primarily between two characters as they travel 3000 miles or so from France to Saudi Arabia, going through most of Europe - Italy, Bulgaria, Croatia, Slovenia, Turkey, before arriving in the Middle East. But this is not a tour, and there are no stopovers for soaking in the sights.

Reda's father is in his twilight years, and wishes to do the Haj. However, since walking and taking the mule is out of the question, he chooses to travel to Mecca by car. He can't drive, and therefore enlists the help of Reda, to his son's protest, to get him there in their broken down vehicle.

But Reda doesn't see the point of having him go along, when his dad could opt for the plane. He resents the idea of having put his personal life on hold for this pilgrimage he couldn't understand. And hence, we set off in this arduous journey with father and son, being not the best of pals.

The beauty of this movie is to witness the development of the father and son pair, the challenges they face, the weird people they meet, having to duke it out in varied weather conditions, and alternating rest stops between motels and sleeping in the car. We see an obvious generation gap in them trying to communicate to each other, the father trying to impose on his son, and the son trying to assert himself as an adult, but circumstances we see, reveal that Reda is quite a fish out of water. Through the many encounters, they actually team up quite well despite their differences.

It's perhaps quite apt to have this film released here last week to coincide with Hari Raya Haji, and having the opportunity to watch our protagonists join the other pilgrims in their Haj. The final scene in Mecca is truly a sight to behold, and you too would feel the claustrophobia and fear as Reda tries to hunt down his dad amongst the thousands of people congregating. The sights of Europe were perhaps deliberately not dwelled upon, so as to build up the anticipation of and focus on the final destination.

It certainly rang home the thought of telling and showing loved ones how much you appreciate them for who they are. Don't miss this, and yes, book early - I was pleasantly surprised that this evening's session was still a full house.