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Welcome  /  La Promesse

Welcome
April 16, 2017 - 7:00 pm

Welcome  (France, 2009)


A young Iraqi-Kurd migrant, Bilal Kayani is trapped at the Chunnel entrance at Calais, but dreams of crossing the English Channel to the United Kingdom by any means possible to be reunited with his girlfriend Mina. He gets some help from a French local, after he is caught and returned to France, where he begins taking swimming lessons in the hopes of swimming the Channel. Produced in an understated and highly realistic style, Philippe Lioret’s film reopened the debate about illegal immigration in France and the culpability of French nationals who help them.

35mm, color, 110 mins.  Director: Philippe Lioret.  Film Movement.  Producer: Christophe Rossignon.  Scriptwriter: Philippe Lioret, Emmanuel Courcol, Olivier Adam.  Cinematographer: Laurent Dailland.  Cast: Vincent Lindon, Firat Ayverdi, Audrey Dana.

La Promesse  (France, 1996)


Roger (Olivier Gourmet) is in the construction business outside Antwerp, Belgium, where he exploits illegal immigrants with the help of his 15-year-old son, Ivan. When one of the workers from Burkina Faso is accidentally killed, Ivan agrees to care for his family, while his father’s only concern is to bury the body in concrete. The Belgian brothers, Luc and Jean-Pierre Dardenne, expose the extreme racism of their countryman in this extremely realistic film of exploitation and loss.

35mm, color, 93 min.  Directed by Luc and Jean-Pierre Dardenne.  Eurimages.  Producer: Hassan Daldoul.  Screenwriter: Luc and Jean-Pierre Dardenne.  Cinematographer: Alain Marcoen.  Cast: Jérémie Renier, Olivier Gourmet, Assita Ouedraogo.