Exils

EXILES is a Tony Gatlif fantasy, complete with lots of music and dance, of what it might be like for a young French couple of Algerian roots, to hitch their way from France back to Algeria (for most, these days, it's the other way 'round). The two seem not to have much or any money, but then they do, but then they don't. They occasionally work to pay their way (with a rather laissez-faire attitude, I must say), screw (not always with each other), and have beaucoup psychological problems. For a couple who carries no baggage, there is way too much emotional baggage here. That's usually the mark of a young filmmaker, but as Mr. Gatlif is nearing 60, I guess we'll have to chalk it up to something else.

I call his film a fantasy because, try as I did to believe these characters and their situation, I couldn't. Or, if they ARE believable, then they are also sometimes simply too stupid to be endured: the couple sneaks aboard a ship without knowing where it's going; they haven't bothered to bone up on Algeria enough to know that certain of its borders have been closed for several years; worst of all, they have no clue that women in Muslim/Arab countries are expected to cover themselves (the year here is 2004, well past 9/11/01, and these are Frenchies, for Christ's sake: If they are not used to Algerians, who the hell IS?). On the plus side we have a lot of color, music and dance, nice cinematography (dig that succulent orange near the finale) and the gorgeous Romain Duris (most recently of "Russian Dolls" and "The Beat My Heart Skipped"). Mr. Duris, hirsute and slender, appears fully nude, front and back, in a rather lengthy shot at the film's beginning; this may be more than enough to induce some viewers to stick around. Did I mention that the film deals in fantasy?

Beautifully-filmed road movie with long musical sequences. The tale of two losers that hit the road to reach Algeria from Paris is peppered with vibrant musical interludes that echo their journey back to their roots, from nose-bleed techno, through passionate flamenco to raw Algerian trance. Once they get there, Gatlif loses his hand a little by not concluding the story. Naima is portrayed as a loose cannon throughout the movie, with hints to her past and a huge question mark over her future. Neither of these is I think is answered conclusively. On a sidenote, is this not one of the most explosive women on screen since "Betty Blue"?

But a pretty entertaining tale very well played by the two lead actors, Lubna Azabal and Romain Duris.

"Exils" is terrific on many levels. Beautiful composition, locations, light, cinematography, performances, and music. The story moves from one marvelous setting to another. The shot's are beautifully composed. The people are "real." I'm amazed that one of the previous reviewers is disturbed by sensuality. It seems that the characters are a bit too real for that person. I'm surprised at the number of other reviewers on this site that fail to connect with the essence of "Exils." Maybe they've never traveled on the cheap or experienced the beauty of random meetings and relying on the good will of strangers. Watch it again if you have the time.

A spiritual journey for the characters and audience alike. I saw this film at a film festival not knowing what to expect. There is not much plot or drama and for viewers seeking those they might be disappointed. What this film does have though is spirit and at intoxicating levels too. The cinematography combined with the music and the journey of the characters combine to put the receptive audience in a kind of trance. An especially memorable scene is a 15 - 20 minute long scene in which the female heroine is exorcised Algerian style, building slowly to a trance. The whole scene is filmed as one shot and the camera is more of a participant than an observer. An experience not to be missed.

As I watched this movie, I became more and more curious, because of the director's obvious love for music. In fact, not only did he direct the movie, he also created much of the music that added up to a stunning soundtrack. But when I get back to my computer, I see that I have in fact already seen a movie by him - Swing - in which wee Max develops an understanding of gypsy culture and guitar playing. He is also famous in certain quarters for Latcho Drom, a movie I have never seen.

Exiles has, at its heart, a road movie. Zano is an Algerian in Paris, completely cut off from his roots - the film opens with him staring out of his flat window over the rooftops, no doubt imagining a different life, because he turns to his girlfriend, Naima, and says "lets go to Algeria". As you do. Naima is harder to work out - for the most part, she seems pretty banal, trivial even, interested solely in her own immediate pleasures. So, when she's in a bar one night, she thinks nothing of slinking off with another man just because he gives her the eye. But there might be reasons - they're not well explored, but it is suggested that she is even more rootless than Zano, with absolutely no expectations. Living for the immediate moment makes sense in that situation. I've said that she's his girlfriend, but I may have over-stated it: we see nothing at all of their prior relationship and only learn that they have a shared history of making porn flicks. Zano doesn't know her well enough to have been told her birthday. It may even be that by the end, she does find a connection within herself, is grounded. If she is, it is music which does it for her.

So, anyway, they are ostensibly walking to Algeria, but we see very little of them actually walking - trains seem to be the preferred mode. They jump a train to near Seville, not Seville itself because the ticket collector is on his way to check their non-existent tickets. They spend some time picking fruit around Seville, and having sex among the (I think) nectarine trees - gorgeous images in this part in particular, with the lush green leaves, the brilliantly red-skinned fruit and two beautiful people playing with each other. Seville, it turns out, is something of a staging post - they meet several Algerians working the fruit fields making their way to Paris because, there, you can get fake work papers. So, there's a nice point being made about our heroes doing the reverse, going to Algeria from Paris for their specific dream of getting in touch with their background. As they get closer to Algeria, they meet more and more refugees flowing the other way.

Their trip is otherwise fairly straight-forward, apart from stealing a ride in a van onto a ferry that's not going to Algeria at all, with a consequent need to take a long ride through near desert in a ramshackle bus that breaks down, after which they're smuggled across the border. The two things that stand out throughout their journey are the scenery and the music - in all the pubs in Seville, we see these impromptu gatherings of musicians just jamming. The back seat of the bus has three or four musicians to provide a live sound track for the trip.

When they don't have live music, Zano and Naima are both plugged into their respective disc-mans - giving Gatlif and his musical collaborator, Delphine Mantoulet, a chance to show off their music. I think this was deliberate - but as they approach their destination, there is less and less reliance on this recorded music and local live music predominates. This culminates in the final main scene - there's a gathering of musicians - a handful of percussionists with little bongo type drums held on their shoulders, a fellow with something not much bigger than a ukulele but with a much deeper sound, and various female voices, ululating rather than singing. Their tempos starts slow and reaches the orgasmic. Naimo is more and more feral in her dancing - she completely lets go and is controlled by the music. I really do think that this is showing her developing a connection with her roots: after all, it follows a scene in which she's told that her vacancy is down to being entirely groundless.