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Salvation Army
- Director: Abdellah Taia
- Writer: Abdellah Taia
- Producer: Hugues Charbonneau; Marie-Ange Luciani
CGiii Comment
A lacklustre, maudlin, semi-autobiographical film...about a gay, poor Muslim who mutters and stoops his way through his dull existence.
For 55 minutes [practically] nothing happens - apart from a few [brief] predatory sexual encounters in dusty backyards...
Then, inexplicably, it jumps 10 years on - to Geneva...with an actor who bears no resemblance to the original character - alas, he is just as miserable.
The problem with this film is simple - Abdellah Taia has had a mundane life and then had the ill-judged, misguided and bizarre notion to share it with the rest of the world.
Some people can write, some people can direct - few can do both.
Trailer...
The(ir) Blurb...
Abdellah is a young gay man navigating the sexual, racial and political climate of Morocco. Growing up in a large family in a working-class neighborhood, Abdellah is caught between a distant father, an authoritarian mother, an older brother whom he adores and a handful of predatory older men, in a society that denies his homosexuality. As a college student, Abdellah moves to Geneva and while faced with the new possibilities of freedom, he grapples with the loss of his homeland. SALVATION ARMY, the directorial debut for Abdellah Taïa - an acclaimed Moroccan and Arab writer - is adapted from his novel of the same name. Taïa is the first writer of his descent to speak out openly about his homosexuality.
Cast & Characters
Said Mrini as Abdellah jeune;
Karim Ait M'Hand as Abdellah adulte;
Amine Ennaji as Slimane;
Frédéric Landenberg as Jean;
Hamza Slaoui as Mustapha;
Malika El Hamaoui as La mère;
Abdelhak Swilah as Le père;
Youness Chara as Fumeur de joints