Picture of the movie Marinheiro das montanhas (Mariner of the mountains) © DR
Karim Aïnouz explores his Algerian origins in Marinheiro das montanhas (Mariner of the Mountains)
Awarded the Prix Un Certain Regard in 2019 for The Invisible Life of Eurídice Gusmão (A Vida Invisível), Algerian-born Brazilian director Karim Aïnouz sets out to conquer his father's homeland in Marinheiro Das Montanhas (Mariner of the Mountains), and paint a portrait of Algeria past and present. A road movie in the form of a fictional autobiography, to be seen as a Special Screening.
January 2019. From Marseille, Karim Aïnouz decides to cross the Mediterranean by boat to undertake his first trip to Algeria, in the footsteps of his father and his past. Accompanied by his camera and the memory of his mother Iracema, who died in 2015, he revisits the relationship and separation of his parents, which he documents through a detailed account of his itinerary, from his arrival in the country to his return to Europe, via the Atlas Mountains.
During this journey, the director is confronted with the first demonstrations of the Hirak for a change of regime in the country, which will later lead to the fall of President Abdelaziz Bouteflika. From this day of protest, he will create Nardjes A., a documentary filmed on the spot with an iPhone, which captures the spirit of a youth determined to build a better future and questions its links with the independence struggles of previous generations.
Intertwining present, past and future in Marinheiro das montanhas (Mariner of the Mountains), Karim Aïnouz reflects on the Algerian war of independence, his childhood memories and the contrasts between his father's Kabylia and Fortaleza, the hometown of the filmmaker and his mother.
An incredible journey through space and time, in which the filmmaker invites us to witness the ups and downs of his personal journey through an unusual prism: the strong link between Algeria and Brazil, two countries "of love, revolution and failure", according to Karim Aïnouz.
