HARKA
Genre
Drama
Running time
90 minutes
Year
2021
Language
Arabic
Subtitle
English
Country
Tunisia, France and Saudi Arabia
Director
Lotfy Nathan
Bio
Producer
Julie Viez, Alex Hugues, Riccardo Maddalosso, Eugene Kotlyarenko, Lotfy Nathan, Tariq Merhab, Nicole Romano, Maurice Fadida
Cast
Adam Bessa, Salima Maatoug, Najib Allagui, Ikbal Harbi
Scriptwriter
Lotfy Nathan
Harka is an impassioned plea for social justice set in Sidi Bouzid, the Tunisian city where the self-immolation of street vendor Mohamed Bouazizi in 2010 triggered the Jasmine Revolution. The thriller contains a powerhouse performance from French-Tunisian actor Adam Bessa as Ali, an impoverished street-seller whose predicament is inspired by Bouazizi's story. Ali sells black market gasoline, risking his life every time he heads into the desert to buy supplies, but he's obliged to turn over most of his earnings in extortion payments to the police. Burdened by debts since his father's death and now responsible for his two younger sisters, he has to beg his brother – who has escaped the family to work as a waiter at a tourist hotel – for support. Director Lotfy Nathan's fictional debut was a stand-out in this year's Cannes Film Festival's Certain Regard section, where Bessa won the award for best performance.
This film is supported by the Red Sea Fund.
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