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.
Other movies
LUMIÈRE, LE CINÉMA
Director: Thierry Frémaux
A contemporary film collating works shot by Louis and Auguste Lumiere from the earliest years of cinema, superbly preserved and restored by the Lumiere Institute in Lyon. Cannes Film Festival director Thierry Frémaux provides an informative commentary as toddlers squabble, a magician performs a trick and a train pulls into a station; the score is by Gabriel Faure, a composer favoured by the Lumiere brothers themselves. More than a hundred short films of 50 seconds each, provide a window both into ordinary life around the turn of the 19th century – not only in France but in places as far-flung as Japan and Algeria - and the wonder felt at the Lumieres’ astonishing invention, the cinematograph, a miracle whose magic continues.
THE TALE OF DAYE'S FAMILY
Director: Karim Elshenawy
Daye, an 14-year-old Nubian albino with a golden voice, faces adversity due to his unique appearance. Abandoned by his father and bullied by peers, he dreams of following his idol, Mohamed Mounir. When he gets a chance to audition for The Voice, Daye and his family embark on a perilous journey from Aswan to Cairo. Their journey is fraught with challenges: a stolen car, lost money, and a harrowing escape from the police. They face discrimination and struggle to survive, but their unwavering determination and Daye's powerful voice keep them going. With the help of a kind fireman and a chance encounter with Mounir himself, Daye overcomes obstacles and captures the hearts of a nation. Daye is a heartwarming tale of resilience, hope, and the transformative power of music. It’s a poignant exploration of tolerance, ambition, and the unbreakable bond of family.
40 ACRES
Director: R.t. Thorne
Danielle Deadwyler shines as the invincible gun-toting matriarch Hailey, a Black military veteran determined to protect and preserve her family and their land in the wake of a man-made apocalypse. A few years before, all animals on Earth were killed by a viral epidemic. Since then, there has a been a breakdown in global food supplies: only those cultivating the land can hope to survive, provided they can ward off roving militias looting the remaining farms. Hailey communicates only with other farmers via CB radio; her four children are walled in with their parents, taught to trust nobody, but when lonely young Emmanuel meets Dawn, a wounded young woman in the woods, Hailey’s regime threatens to break down from within.
BLACK DOG
Director: Guan Hu
While China buzzes in anticipation of the Beijing Olympics, Lang returns from a decade in prison to his home town to find it largely deserted, its crumbling concrete blocks being torn down to make way for a new industrial city. The exodus of humans means that the area is now overrun with stray dogs; Lang, needing a job, joins a hastily assembled extermination team supposed to round them up but, when a dog suspected of having rabies adopts him, he realizes his real mission is to save the animals, including the ones at the nearly deserted local zoo.. In a riveting, almost wordless performance, Eddie Peng shows Lang recover his humanity, even as the landscape around him becomes increasingly desolate.
