The Secret of the Grain [Criterion Collection] [Blu-ray]

MOVIE DESCRIPTION:

Though it is seldom discussed (or acknowledged) in the West, modern-day France incorporates a substantial number of immigrant communities, with many indigenes from North Africa populating the bucolic regions of southern Gaul. Abdel Kechiche's La Graine et le Mulet hones in on one such community, located on the ocean, which exudes a laid-back, unforced rhythm and a slower pace of life for all of its residents. For many years, one such occupant, sexagenarian Slimane Beiji (Habib Boufares), has nurtured a single lifelong dream: to open up his own couscous and fish restaurant in the community. This dream appears ever more impossible when Slimane is promptly laid off, but he soon lands on the idea of occupying a wrecked boat and converting it into the restaurant. Meanwhile, the gentleman has recently divorced his wife, Souad (Bouraouia Marzouk), and has moved into a hotel owned by his lover, Latifa (Hatika Karaoui), but Slimane's extended family continues to meet at Souad's home on a weekly basis for her beloved fish couscous, where they expostulate their views on life and reflect on the state of their relationships with one another. In a tangentially related subplot, Slimane's oldest son, Hamid (Abdelhamid Aktouche), enjoys an extramarital affair, ignoring his nuptials with his Russian wife and the presence of his infant boy, and thus endangering the sanctity and happiness of his family. ~ Nathan Southern, Rovi

DVD FEATURES:

• Number of Discs: 1
• Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1 (Theatre Wide Screen)
• Audio: DTS-HD Master Audio
• Subtitle: Eng
• Features:
  • New Video Interview with Kechiche
  • Sueur, Kechiche's extended reedit of the climactic belly-dancing sequence, featuring a new video introduction by the Director
  • New Video Interview with Film Scholar Ludovic Cortade
  • Excerpt from a 20 heures television interview with Kechiche and Actress Hafsia Herzi
  • Video Interviews with Herzi, Actress Bouraoia Marzouk, and the film's musicians
  • Theatrical Trailer
  • Plus: a Booklet featuring an essay by film critic Wesley Morris

AWARDS

• Independent Spirit Awards

•     Nominated Best Foreign Film - 2008 (Abdel Kechiche)

• London Film Festival

•     Film Presented - 2007

• Miami International Film Festival

•     Film Presented - 2008

• Rotterdam International Film Festival

•     Film Presented - 2008

• San Francisco International Film Festival

•     Film Presented - 2008

• Seattle International Film Festival

•     Film Presented - 2008

• Tribeca Film Festival

•     Film Presented - 2008

• Venice International Film Festival

•     Won Special Jury Prize - 2007

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:

• Cast:

  
       Habib Boufares - Slimane Beiji
       Hafsia Herzi - Rym
       Farida Benkhetache - Karima
       Abdelhamid Aktouche - Hamid
       Bouraouia Marzouk - Souad
       Alice Houri - Julia
       Sami Zitouni
       Abdelkader Djeloulli
       Olivier Loustau
       Leila D'issernio
       Bruno Lochet
       Cyril Favre
       Sabrina Quazani

• Director:

  Abdel Kechiche

• Producer:

  Claude Berri, Pierre Grunstein

• Dialogue Writer:

  Abdel Kechiche

• Screen Story:

  Abdel Kechiche

• Dialogue Writer:

  Ghalia Lacroix

• Cinematographer:

  Lubomir Bakchev

• Editor:

  Ghalia Lacroix

• Production Designer:

  Benoit Barouh

• Executive Producer:

  Nathalie Rheims