Algiers, a few years after the Civil War. Amal and Samir decide to celebrate their 20th anniversary at a restaurant. Over the course of their journey, they both reminisce about their Algeria(s): Amal through the shattering of dreams, and Samir through the need to make the best of the situation. At the same time, Fahim, their son, and his friends Feriel and Reda wander Algiers, which is gradually closing in on itself.
A film by Sofia Djama
Algeria / France / Belgium / Qatar, feature drama, 1h42, Drama, language French, Arabic
starring Sami Bouajila, Nadia Kaci, Lyna Khoudri
First feature film
Director's Statement I was a high school student during the civil war. I remember being scared. Paradoxically, these were the best years of my life. Every day, we celebrated our inner burning desire to live: we went to the beach, hiking, we threw parties, this was our way of saying "NO." As years passed by, death became commonplace. In the late 90s, the killings stopped. It seemed the army had eradicated most of the maquis groups. It was the beginning of "Civil Concord:" repentant criminals came out of their hideouts and got back to civilian life with apparent impunity. The Bouteflika era had begun. Civil war felt far away, but with a bombing attack here and there the regime strengthened its dictatorship in the name of state security. Our dream of democracy was definitely shattered. Bitterness and disillusionment settled in the heart of the Algerians. I wanted to show the consequences of this policy on people's privacy, lack of desire and deep cynicism, and I chose two generational points of view: that of actual adults who were 20 years old in October 1988, and who are now destitute of all desire and hope for a change; and that of their children who were 20 years old in 2008 (my generation). Unlike their elders, they keep dreaming, they create their own codes and express their quest in a rather clumsy way, because they did not inherit the proper knowledge to formulate their fight. They are much more lucid than their elders, but they are also more exposed to the danger and the cruelty of the regime. The plot of the film happens in a single night. In the end, none of the adults or younger characters can escape the violence of the country. Sofia Djama
2017 | 32th FIFF - Festival International du film francophone de Namur 2017, Belgium | 29 Sept - 06 Oct 2017 * First Feature Competition * Prix de la Meilleure première œuvre de fiction francophone (Best 1st Francophone Feature Award) www.fiff.be/films/les-bienheureux/4909
2017 | 74th Venice Film Festival, Italy * Orizzonti - Competition * World Première / Première Mondiale * Best Actress Orizzonti Award, for Lyna Khoudri * Projection / Screening: 6 September 2017, at 17:00, Sala Darsena http://www.labiennale.org/en/cinema/2017/program-cinema-2017/sofia-djama-les-bienheureux
2015 | Sopadin - Grand Prix for Best Screenplay * Special Mention
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AR
تدور أحداث الفيلم في الجزائر بعد بضع سنوات على انتهاء الحرب الأهلية، حيث يتبع قصة أمل وسمير اللذين يقرران الاحتفال بعيد زواجهما العشرين في مطعم. وبينما هما في طريقهما إلى المكان المقصود، يتبادل الثنائي آرائهما بشأن وطن الأحلام الضائعة والآمال التائهة. في المقلب الآخر، يتجول ابنهما فهيم برفقة عددٍ من أصدقائه في أرجاء العاصمة الجزائرية؛ المدينة التي تفتقد إلى الأمان والتي على وشك أن تدهسهم وتسرق شبابهم
فيلم روائي طويل / الجزائر, فرنسا, بلجيكا, قطر / ٢٠۱٧ / 0 دقائق / اللغة الأصلية: العربية, الفرنسية / الإهتمامات: دراما
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