Exils

In Tony Gatlif's distinctive film 'Exils', we meet a young French couple: he is ethnically French, she is Arab, but both had Algerian ancestors, and the movie follows them after they spontaneously decide to abandon Paris and investigate their roots. The couple are presented in the film as very sensual, and the music and images that surround (and define) them are shared also by the viewer. The film touches on some interesting ideas, notably the not always chosen trade-off between freedom and belonging, and ends with a remarkable extended sequence depicting an Arab ritual of personal abandonment that bears comparison to (and is in fact more disturbing than) anything from 'The Exorcist'. What it doesn't have is much of a conventional plot beyond the collage of sights and sounds; and the characters, though strongly-drawn, do not evolve dramatically over the course of the movie. It's still a striking piece of work; but fiction is being used here, rather than serving as an end in itself.

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.

This movie is a bit weird, but it's a nice multicultural experience though. It's about a man and a woman which are French but have Algerian routs that go on a journey (on a walk trip!) to find out these routs in Alger. They cross the south of Spain and meet many people, from Arabs to Gypsy. This film is very interesting from the cultural point of view, but is a bit weird sometimes, because we don't know anything about these characters, who are they, where they came from. Just during the trip we start finding out something about them, but even so many questions still open after the movie ends. It's an artsy movie, that's for sure, with a great cultural and musical impact, but it gets a bit strange and boring at parts. The plot could have been better, but I'll score it 7/10 because of the great soundtrack (which has Flamenco, Arab and Electro/Techno music), the very weird tribal-ritual scene (near the end), and also the artsy cinematography.

"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.