Phonearl Good start, but then it gets ruined

TaryBiggBall It was OK. I don't see why everyone loves it so much. It wasn't very smart or deep or well-directed.

SanEat A film with more than the usual spoiler issues. Talking about it in any detail feels akin to handing you a gift-wrapped present and saying, "I hope you like it -- It's a thriller about a diabolical secret experiment."

Freeman This film is so real. It treats its characters with so much care and sensitivity.

valandil-1 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.

Red-125 Exils (2004) (Exiles) was written, produced, and directed by Tony Gatlif. I saw this film at the 2005 Cinefranco Film Festival in Toronto. (www.cinefranco.com) This movie is a odyssey of sorts. Both Zano, played by Romain Duris, and Naima (Lubna Azabal) live in France, but have ties that draw them back to Algeria. The film follows their slow but determined trip southward.Since they are traveling without funds--or even a map--they naturally need help from others along the way. These interactions with the people they meet on the road are fascinating. The two characters are not exactly role models for today's youth, but you have to admire their tenacity and their unwillingness to turn back.Not a masterpiece, but an interesting movie that's worth seeking out.

Mariana Cornejo A road movie told by the book: The growing of the character through the road. Two characters without a past or future. The matter is the "here" and "now". And a soundtrack most people would want by the end of this picture.The initial sequence may be a homage to the "throwing the jar of beer" sequence of Trainspotting, but it settles the tone of latent violence in the whole movie. After some sex a couple just want to go to Algeria, just like that. The same if you are watching the football game and want to buy a pack of gum at the seven-eleven. After that, there's only one word to define how you feel when you see this: Unconfortable. Most of this feeling comes from the fact that this people random like a feather in the wind, going back and forward in their journey as well as in their relationship. After an unnecessary long final exorcism sequence (and if you saw "Twenty-nine palms" and 1975's "Laure") you are enough paranoic to expect the worst. By the end, you will leave a sigh of relief for sure. There are good sequences, good acting, Lubna Azabal is sensual, Romain Duris is good, anyway, you'll decide what you conserve and what you throw away. And, yes, the soundtrack is superb going from the modern electronic hybrids, passing through the flamenco, until the source of all in the Algerian (and therefore by extension African and eastern) types of music. The music composed by the director, Tony Gatlif, is so good that you may wonder if the whole movie was just a big excuse to sell you the soundtrack (and sorry, Mr. Gatlif). But this factor certainly raises the level of the film. And the theme of the road movie also gives a chance to shoot an attractive cinematography. It's up to you.

writestuff-1 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.