La maison jaune (2007)

from the Bari Balafon Film Festival 2008 program, director, Koblan Bonaventura Amissah: "The family of Mouloud, a peasant in the Algerian mountains, is overwhelmed by a tragic loss: their ... See full summary »

Director:

Amor Hakkar

Stars:

Aya Hamdi, Amor Hakkar, Tounes Ait Ali

5 wins & 3 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview:
Aya Hamdi	...	Alya
Amor Hakkar	...	Mouloud
Tounes Ait Ali	...	Fatima
Bissa-Ratiba Ghomrassi	...	Bissa

Storyline

from the Bari Balafon Film Festival 2008 program, director, Koblan Bonaventura Amissah: "The family of Mouloud, a peasant in the Algerian mountains, is overwhelmed by a tragic loss: their soldier son has been killed in an ambush. With stubborn patience, Mouloud sets off on a motor tricycle to Algiers to get his son's body. The journey is difficult and painful through the harsh landscape of the mountains and a thousand bureaucratic and administrative setbacks. When he returns home, the battle is not over. Mouloud now has to fight the sadness and give new meaning to his life and that of his wife, who has been cloistered in profound silence by her sorrow."

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Plot Keywords:

color in title | 

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Genres:

Drama

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Details

Official Sites:

Official site

Country:

France Algeria

Language:

Arabic

Release Date:

5 March 2008 (France)

Also Known As:

The Yellow House

Company Credits

Production Co:

Sarah Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

84 min

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1

User Reviews

Yellow House : A film by Amor Hakkar which brings Algerian cinema into limelight.

In Yellow House,Algerian filmmaker Amor Hakkar captures the beauty of a simple Berber village family living in hostile mountains whose happiness is shattered due to the unexpected death of their only son.Sadness is the main theme of this simple yet poignant film which is characterized by a very eclectic yet haunting musical score.Young Algerian musician Faycal Salhi recreates somber atmosphere in this film by making effective use of Oud,a musical instrument which is widely used in Arabic musical compositions.It can be expected that some viewers might like to compare "Yellow House" with David Lynch film "The Straight Story".Such a comparison is going to appear as valid only to some extent as the theme of one ordinary man against the system is a common element of both the films but there are a lot of cultural differences too which can be noticed in both these films.So in this manner Amor Hakkar's film is not at all an Algerian Straight Story.Acting performances are excellent in Yellow House despite the fact that its simple storyline could have induced its lead actors to involve in a bit of over acting.Amor Hakkar is to be applauded for the just manner in which he has played the role of a simple minded family chief who goes to claim his son's mortal remains from the city. Both Algerian cinema as well as Arab cinema have come to limelight again with the success of "La Maison Jaune" at various international film festivals such as Locarno and Kerala film festivals.Yellow house is a film with a valid reason to be watched as it shows us how ordinary people use all their available emotional resources in order to overcome the loss of their loved ones.