This touching father & son drama, which won the Jury Award and was nominated for the Golden Palm at the 2010 Cannes film festival, tells the story of a man who is tossed around by fate as a result of the civil war in his country. According to Mahamat-Saleh Haroun, the film can be seen as a metaphor for the African continent, where fathers "take out a mortgage on the future of the next generations," according to the filmmaker.
Adam, who is in his sixties and is a former swimming champion, works as a lifeguard at the swimming pool of an expensive hotel in N’Djamena. When the hotel is taken over by Chinese investors, he is demoted to the position of bellboy. He is forced to give up his job as lifeguard to his son Abdel, who the new management say is "easier on the eye for the hotel guests." Humiliated by this, he becomes consumed by bitterness.
In the meantime, a civil war is brewing in the country; rebels take up arms against the government, which demands a 'war contribution' from its citizens in the form of money or military service. Adam is old and penniless: all he has is his son. Under pressure from the local authorities, he sends Abdel off to war. His conscience quickly starts troubling him, however.
Thursday 12 August, 09.30 PM, Rialto (director present)
Friday 13 August, 04.30 PM, Rialto (director present)
Sunday 22 August, 07.15 PM, Rialto