As in many other places, too many young Algerians can't find work in their own country, no matter how highly qualified they are. So they try to cross the Mediterranean to what they see as an Eldorado, Europe.
Five young people from Oran, fed up with not being treated as they should , set out on this adventure. The theme is well-known but what's original is that the film is shot by one of the protagonists with a rented camera. Thus he films their whole sorry saga, from the jolly preparations, to the joyous departure, right up to the inevitable. For, in the end, there's no trace of the five friends on the blue sea, only the camera still rolling, showing nothing but the waves and the horizon. No need for commentary: the tragedy is absolute.
As already expressed, the theme of migrants drowning in the Mediterranean is not new, but Farid Bentoumi ("Good Luck Algeria", "Rouge") approaches it from an unusual angle: he has the action recorded by Amine, a member of the gang of friends and an amateur cameraman not at all gifted: the result is messy shots, approximate focus, shaky and badly framed views that are rather painful to watch, but which accentuate the impression of sheer realism. Thanks to him, we are really part of the merry group, and we feel their loss all the more keenly for that. By extension, we are made to feel sorry for all the wayward people of that kind victimized by despair, delusion and the inhuman rapacity of the smugglers.
All in all, a film full of empathy that never lapses into melodrama. It takes an effort to watch it but it is worth it.
Five young people from Oran, fed up with not being treated as they should , set out on this adventure. The theme is well-known but what's original is that the film is shot by one of the protagonists with a rented camera. Thus he films their whole sorry saga, from the jolly preparations, to the joyous departure, right up to the inevitable. For, in the end, there's no trace of the five friends on the blue sea, only the camera still rolling, showing nothing but the waves and the horizon. No need for commentary: the tragedy is absolute.
As already expressed, the theme of migrants drowning in the Mediterranean is not new, but Farid Bentoumi ("Good Luck Algeria", "Rouge") approaches it from an unusual angle: he has the action recorded by Amine, a member of the gang of friends and an amateur cameraman not at all gifted: the result is messy shots, approximate focus, shaky and badly framed views that are rather painful to watch, but which accentuate the impression of sheer realism. Thanks to him, we are really part of the merry group, and we feel their loss all the more keenly for that. By extension, we are made to feel sorry for all the wayward people of that kind victimized by despair, delusion and the inhuman rapacity of the smugglers.
All in all, a film full of empathy that never lapses into melodrama. It takes an effort to watch it but it is worth it.
