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Civilized People

Civilisées

2000 — France / Lebanon — Fiction — 97 min — 35mm
Nestor Almendros Prize, New York City, 2000 · Venice Film Festival — Official selection, 1999 · 12e Black Movie, Sélection, Genève, 2002
Credits
Director
Randa Chahal
Producer
Daniel Toscan Du Plantier, Euripide Productions
Production
Arte France Cinéma, Le Studio Canal+, Leil Productions, France 2 Cinéma
Screenplay
Randa Chahal
Photography
Ricardo Jacques Gale, Roby Breidy
Editing
Juliette Weifling
Music
Ziad Rahbani
Set design
Sylvain Chauvelot
Synopsis
FR

Pendant la guerre civile, une partie des Libanais a fui en Europe, abandonnant leurs grands appartements, leurs majestueuses maisons et... leurs domestiques : Sri Lankais, Philippins, Egyptiens «importés» au Liban par milliers pour servir. Tous ces gens et bien d'autres subissent l'humeur du franc tireur qui contrôle l'immeuble, ses habitants, le quartier et quelques passages de la ville. Leurs histoires se mêlent, celle du jeune milicien musulman et de la domestique chrétienne, celle de la riche bourgeoise revenue pour retrouver son amant, celle de la «vie périlleuse» des chats de Beyrouth…

EN

During the civil war, some Lebanese have fled to Europe, leaving their large apartments, luxurious houses, and their servants: Sri Lankans, Filipinos, Egyptians “imported” to serve by the thousands. These and many more must deal with the maverick who controls the building, its occupants, the neighbourhood, and a few areas of the city. Their lives intersect: the young Muslim militia fighter and the Christian maid, the middle-class woman who has returned in search of her lover, the Beirut cats and their “treacherous life”…

Full Film
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