Samba (2014)

Senegalese Samba has worked 10 years in France. He's arrested and befriends the woman helping him with legal matters as volunteer after a burnout at work. He's released after being told to leave France. Chemistry?

Directors:

Olivier Nakache, Éric Toledano

Writers:

Éric Toledano (scenario), Olivier Nakache (scenario)

Stars:

Omar Sy, Charlotte Gainsbourg, Tahar Rahim

4 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Omar Sy	...	Samba Cissé
Charlotte Gainsbourg	...	Alice
Tahar Rahim	...	Walid dit Wilson
Izïa Higelin	...	Manu
Issaka Sawadogo	...	Jonas Karanoto
Hélène Vincent	...	Marcelle
Youngar Fall	...	L'oncle Lamouna
Christiane Millet	...	Madeleine
Jacqueline Jehanneuf	...	Maggy
Liya Kebede	...	Magali dite Gracieuse
Sabine Pakora	...	Gracieuse - la gérante du salon
Clotilde Mollet	...	Josiane - de l'agence d'intérim
Boubacar Ndiaye	...	Un migrant à l'association
Oumar Makalou	...	Un migrant à l'association
Roukiata Ouedraogo	...	Un migrant à l'association

Storyline

Samba migrated to France ten years ago from Senegal, and has since been plugging away at various lowly jobs. Alice is a senior executive who has recently undergone a burn-out. Both struggle to get out of their dead-end lives. Samba's willing to do whatever it takes to get working papers, while Alice tries to get her life back on track until fate draws them together.

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Plot Keywords:

paris france | immigrant | legal aid | character name as title | forename as title | 

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Taglines:

Sometimes those with nothing have the most to lose.

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama | Romance

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for language

Did You Know?

Trivia

When Samba is sitting in the Metro waiting for a train, behind him is a poster with the heading 'Pasolini Roma'. This is an advertisement for an exhibition that examined the works of writer and filmmaker Pier Paolo Pasolini and in particular, his interactions with Rome. The exhibition was not limited to his cinema work but also included poetry, politics, his commitment to city life, sex, and friendship. It was held in three cities - Barcelona, Paris and Berlin, with the Paris exhibition at the La Cinémathèque Française running form 16th October 2013 t0 26th January 2014.

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Quotes

Alice: Ni le début d'abus.

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Crazy Credits

A continuation of the last scene showing Samba walking through Paris is seen behind the initial credits (till around one-third of the way through the credits).

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Connections

References Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan (2006)

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Soundtracks

Time Lapse
Written by Ludovico Einaudi
Performed by Ludovico Einaudi

User Reviews

Hot topic

And I'm not talking hot as in physically (though some may argue Omar is hot, which I reckon is not completely wrong), but as in right now, news worthy topic hot. Immigrants are one of the main "issues" in quite a few countries at the moment and it's almost comical to what degree some are arguing on this.

This movie on the other hand is intentionally funny and it has good actors to back that story up. Even if you don't buy everything the characters are doing, you can easily empathize with them, if you're willing and open enough, to let those emotions in. The movie has a message in all the entertainment, which can be taken or read or completely ignored. That's up to the viewer. It is a very well made movie though and you can watch it, even without the current events being an obstacle to that form of "entertainment"

Details

Official Sites:

Gaumont [France] Official site

Country:

France

Language:

French English Portuguese Russian Serbian Arabic

Release Date:

15 October 2014 (France)

Also Known As:

Samba

Filming Locations:

Paris, France

Box Office

Budget:

$20,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$24,588, 26 July 2015

Gross USA:

$151,530

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$39,178,695

Company Credits

Production Co:

Quad Productions, Ten Films, Gaumont

Technical Specs

Runtime:

118 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1