DÉSERTS
Directed by Faouzi Bensaïdi
2023 | 124 min | France, Germany, Morocco, Belgium, Qatar | UNCL 15+
Awards
2023 Mostra de València-Cinema del Mediterrani
Winner Best Director & Best Actor
2023 Cannes
Nominated Director's Fortnight
2023 Melbourne International Film Festival
World premiering at the Cannes Director’s Fortnight, DÉSERTS is a comically thrilling road film following a scenic journey from Casablanca to the South of Morocco Sahara. Two under-performing, gawky associates, debt collectors Mehdi & Hamid, are tasked with traversing remote villages to track down overextended individuals. This futile endeavour only results in absurd and comical escapades when they intersect with a mysterious stranger bound in handcuffs, leading to the beginning of an unforeseen and mystical journey.
From Moroccan actor and director Faouzi Bensaïdi, who is a familiar face on the festival circuit, with several of his films garnering awards, including MILLE MOIS (2003), which won the Prix de la Jeunesse and the Prix le Premier Regard at the Cannes Film Festival, and DEATH FOR SALE (2011), Morocco's Official Submission for Best Foreign Language Film at the 85th Academy Awards.
“Those that prefer straightforward cinema with dotted I’s and crossed T’s will be out of their comfort zone here, but it looks like manna for cinephiles.”—— Alissa Simon | Variety
