Mustafa, an old Moroccan worker emigrated in France, feels himself near the end and wishes to make his dream come true: the hajj in Mecca. Due to the lack of money for plane ticket, Mustafa must go by car but has nobody to go with; and after his oldest son got his drivers license taken away last minute for drunk driving, Reda is assigned by his father to drive him to Mecca. Reda, who does not follow the muslim tradition and has a difficult relationship with his father, tries to escape the journey, but he cannot refuse. Réda, summoned to accompany his father on a pilgrimage to Mecca, complies reluctantly - as he preparing for his high school diploma and, even more important, has a secret girlfriend. The trip will be three-thousand-kilometers long by car, through Italy, former Yugoslavia, Turkey and Jordan. Even if he doesn't want to disrespect his father's will, Reda is nonetheless angry at his father's religion that he considers as an insane institution that assault his freedom. To him, his father's wish to accomplish the hajj before his death is ridiculous. Mustafa, disgusted and humiliated by his son's disrespect towards their ancestors' religion, is even more withdrawn. As both embark on a road trip thousands of kilometres away from southern France in a broken-down car, the once-icy father-and-son relationship starts to thaw as both gradually come to know each other. 

starring
Nicolas Cazale, Mohammed Majd

a film by Ismaël FERROUKHI

Morocco / France, 2004, feature, 1h48, couleur, 35mm, drama

CAST
Nicolas Cazale,
Mohammed Majd,
Roxane Mesquida,
Jacky Nercessian,
Kaml Belghazi,
Aurélie Ayol,
Liam Engle,
Malika Mesrar El Hadaoui,
Ghina Ognianova

Languages : Bulgarian, French, Arabic, English, Italian, Turkish Subtitles : Italian

Director of photography: Katell Djian
Editing: Tina Baz
Music: Fowzi Guerdjou
Sound: Xavier Griette

Production: Ognon Pictures
Co-Production: Arte France Cinéma, Soread 2M, Casablanca Film Production, Les Films du Passage
Distribution: Pyramide International

FESTIVALS:
* 2009 MedFilm Festival in ROMA, Italy * MedFilm Festival 2009 Opening Film * Showcase Morocco 2005 
Seattle International Film Festival 2005 * Official Selection 2005 Toronto International Film Festival 2005 * Official Selection 2004 
Namur International Frenchlanguage Film Festival * Special Jury Prize * Golden Bayard to the Best First Film * Youth Jury Award 2004
Venice Film Festival - Mostra Internazionale d'Arte Cinematografica di Venezia| VENICE, Italy | won the Luigi De Laurentiis Prize for the best first feature.br />