QUICK AND DIRTY: LIVE FROM THE RED SEA

Based on real-life events that took place in 2015, Red Path tells the story of quiet and introspective teen Ashraf (Ali Hleli) and his more outgoing cousin Nizar (Yassine Samouni), of around the same age. They live a mostly eventful life with their large family of herders, somewhere in the vast Tunisian arid hinterlands. One day, they set out to explore the towering Mghila Mountain, from which they have an impressive view of the desert. Nizar notes that millions of years earlier all of that was underwater. The two young males imagine that they were swimming in the vastness. Their daydream is abruptly interrupted by a gang of jihadists. Ashraf is knocked unconscious. Upon waking up, he comes across the most gruesome of sights: his cousin has been beheaded.

Ashraf puts his cousin’s head inside a bag and returns home. He adopts a baby goat on his quest, after a landmine leaves the hapless animal orphaned. The chilling news have a devastating affect on the closely-knit family. Nizar’s mother does not accept that they should bury her son without the rest of the body. “He came out of me whole”, she heartbreakingly explains. Ashraf’s mother is relieved that her son is still alive, however both must contend with survivor’s guilt, and ensure that their sentiments do not intoxicate the direct family of the bereaved (the two women happen to be sisters). In order to cope with grief, Ashraf has visions, and establishes a dialogue with his cousin’s well-natured and playful spirit. “You don’t even remember you saw my killing!”, Nizar notes. Memory and discernment become fuzzy and unreliable under such harsh conditions.

Get ready for an emotionally eviscerating and impeccably executed cinematic tour-de-force. Red Path blends realism with dream and hallucination to exceptional results, without lapsing into facile stereotypes and obvious takeaways for a split second. The violence is brutal, its depiction is auspicious, yet never exploitative. The focus of the movie is on Ashraf’s psychological collapse, as well as the repercussions of collective trauma. The large family manages to stay united, and are hellbent on reclaiming Nizar’s body – whoever dangerous another incursion into the gorgeous mountains may be.

The acting is superb. Hleli’s delivery is exceptionally mature: his large, reflective eyes exude fear and perplexity, while his childish grimace – with a prominent missing tooth – conveys vulnerability. The young actor could hold the entire film together entirely on his own. Fortunately, this is not necessary: every single member of the cast delivers a sincere and affecting performance.

The camera work capitalises on the abundant sunlight in order to craft a sense of ethereality. While the settings look extremely natural, there is also a spiritual quality attached to the images. Most of the camerawork is handheld, with abundant close-ups, ensuring that members of the audience get intimate, as if they were just another cousin watching the developments unfold firsthand and right in front of their eyes. Low-angle shots, often from behind the grass enhance the strength of the characters. Faces seen through dirty window frames, dust storms and thunder lightning provide the movie with a touch of mysticism.

Despite the large repercussions of the decapitation in the media, and how it rocked Tunisian society, the Red Path is not a political film. Instead, Tunisian director Lotfi Achour opts for a more poetic approach in his sophomore feature. Red Path takes viewers on a fascinating journey of the human mind, with all of its vertiginous twists and turns – sometimes magnificent, sometimes terrifying. Make sure you wear a seat belt.

Red Path is showing in the Official Competition of the 4th Red Sea International Film Festival.