After Bab el-Oued City, it was temporarily impossible to return to Algeria," says Merzak Allouache, who had charted the rising levels of violence in his homeland in that feature. "At the same time, the desire to make films was as intense as ever…Salut Cousin is something of respite for me, closer to comedy than drama."
Allouache's 'lighter' look at life in Salut Cousin featuring Gad Elmaleh and Mess Hattou, focuses on two Algerians in France - country lad Alik is straight off the boat, while Mok, his cousin, is a second-generation wide-boy. The storyline revolves around Alik's arrival in Paris where, wide-eyed with amazement, he discovers the delights and horrors the capital has in store for him. Initially jealous of his cousin's lifestyle, in time "he is able to keenly perceive the universe Mok is floundering in, the dream-cum-nightmare through which he tries to navigate," says Allouache, who scripted the film with Caroline Thivel.
Meanwhile, Mok decides to escape the concrete jungle by creating his own little world, but "stubborn reality catches up with him, flailing him with the reality of his surroundings and his failures," explains Allouache.Produced by Jacques Bidou, Salut Cousin is another feature out of the Paris-based JBA Production stable, the production entity that is acquiring a reputation for spotting emerging talent. The company's credits include Rithy Pank's Rice People (Cambodia), Sana Na N'Hada's Xime (Guinea Bissau) and Ingrid Sinclair's Flame (Zimbabwe), which is also unspooling in Directors' Fortnight this year.
Tim Avis
Prod Co: JBA Production/La Sept Cinema, Flashback Audiovisuel/Artemis Productions/RTBF/Samsa Films
Prod: Jacques Bidou
Dir: Merzak Allouache
Scr: Merzak Allouache, Caroline Thivel
Ph: Pierre Aim
Prod des: Olivier Raoux
Costumes: Anne Schotte
Music: Safy Boutella
Editor: Denise de Casabianca
Cast: Gad Elmaleh, Mess Hattou, Magaly Berdy, Anne Gisel Glass, Jean Benguigui
Running time: 103mins
International sales: Léonor Films
