Chichester Cinema at New Park
Couscous (aka ‘The Secret of the Grain')
- La Graine et le Mulet
Abdel Kechiche’s new film is an expansive ensemble comedy-drama filmed in the southern French port of Séte, and centred on a north African dockside community.
In his sixties, Monsieur Beiji is tired of a life of toil in a shipyard, and wants to realize his long-cherished dream, opening a floating restaurant specializing in fish-and-couscous dishes (hence the grain and the mullet of the French title).
But the ship is still to be renovated and local dignitaries to be persuaded that the venture has a future. Then there are Beiji's friends and family - including the new woman in his life, his ex-wife and a host of neighbours - who have their own parts to play in the success or failure of his dream.
A richly characterized sprawl of film, The Secret of the Grain is an affectionate, intimate portrait of a port, a community and a culture, and confirms Kechiche as one of the new filmmakers with the keenest eye for the cultural complexity of 21st century France. With Sabrina Quazani, Leila D’Issernio, Mélèze (Subtitles)
France · 2007 · Abdel Kechiche · 151min
