Le Grand Voyage
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| Le Grand Voyage | |
|---|---|
| Directed by | Ismaël Ferroukhi |
| Produced by | Humbert Balsan |
| Written by | Ismaël Ferroukhi |
| Starring | Nicolas Cazalé, Mohamed Majd |
| Distributed by | Pyramide Distribution |
| Release date(s) | September 7, 2004 |
| Running time | 108 min |
| Language | Moroccan Arabic, French |
| IMDb profile | |
Le Grand Voyage is a 2004 film written and directed by Ismaël Ferroukhi. The film portrays the relationship between father and son as both embark on a religious pilgrimage trip by car. It was shown at the 2004 Toronto and Venice International Film Festivals.
Contents |
[edit] Plot
Réda is a French-Moroccan teenager due to sit for Baccalauréat. When his devout father asks Réda to accompany him on a pilgrimage to Mecca, he reluctantly agrees. However, the father insists that they travel by car. As both embark on a road trip thousands of kilometres away from southern France, the once-icy father-and-son relationship starts to thaw as both gradually come to know each other. Réda, being the young Frenchman that he is, speaks only in French to his father, who is seen speaking only Arabic for the majority of the film. Later, when necessary, the father proves that he in fact speaks impeccable French; his choice to speak only Arabic to his son is therefore purposeful. Ferroukhi is quoted, saying, “It is intentional… he wants to teach his son the language.” Of Réda he says that he, “has lost touch with everything that binds him to his language and culture.” The director uses this language barrier as a vehicle to eventually unite the two. “He tries to reconnect to him…”[1]
Along the way, the two meet several interesting characters. The son learns about Islam and why his father thought it would be preferable to make the pilgrimage by car rather than by airplane.
The route taken by the father and son goes from France through Italy, Slovenia, Croatia, Serbia, Bulgaria, Turkey, Syria, and Jordan before reaching Saudi Arabia. According to the Internet Movie Database, the film was actually shot in some of these countries, namely France, Slovenia, Bulgaria, and Turkey. Most scenes that were set in the middle east were shot in Morocco. However, some scenes involving the two principal actors were actually shot in Mecca. While the Saudi Arabian government had previously permitted documentary crews to shoot in Mecca, this was the first fiction feature permitted to shoot during the Hajj. The film's director, Ismaël Ferroukhi, said that while shooting in Mecca, "no one looked at the camera; people didn't even seem to see the crew -- they're in another world."[2] .
[edit] Cast
- Nicolas Cazalé – Réda
- Mohamed Majd – The Father
- Jacky Nercessian – Mustapha
- Ghina Ognianova – The old woman
- Kamel Belghazi – Khalid
- Atik Mohamed – Le pélerin Ahmad
[edit] References
- ^ {{cite news|url=http://www.accessmylibrary.com/coms2/summary_0286-34077097_ITM|accessdate=2007-01-01|title=An Interview with Filmmaker Ismaël Ferroukhi|work=World Literature Today|date=[[2007-01-01\\}}
- ^ "The long and winding road", The Guardian, 2005-10-07. Retrieved on 2007-04-04.
[edit] External links
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