Nuits d'Arabie

Nuits d'Arabie is a film where the detailed photography and the juxtaposition between two extraordinarily different lives mesh in a film about love. The neat ordered life of Georges (Jules Werner) and the tattered uncertain life of Yamina (Sabrina Ouazai) are both shaken when they meet by chance. The film provides a naive and optimistic view of how love can change one's life. The protagonist's simple desire to launch into a relationship with a stranger on a train builds as the film explores the ideas of love between cultures.

The settings move from the city lights of Luxemborg to the simplicity and stark beauty of the Algerian desert scape. The use of light within the film plays on the face of the enigmatic and ever-changing visage of the beautiful Yamina and paints a picture of a woman whose life shifts between and among the shadows of a contemporary and sometimes violent world.

Georges, a man who relinquishes everything because of his desire, and love, is driven by the kind of passionate confusion that makes him endearing to an audience.

The considered direction of Paul Kieffer(who also shares a writing credit with Philippe Blasband) builds the audience's relationship with Yamina and Georges through interesting, and circular narrative structures. Nuits d'Arabie takes the audience on a journey where they want Georges search for his Yamina to culminate in the romantic dream of 'happily ever after'.

I went to this movie to see what Luxembourgish cinema was like and well.. I was not impressed. Although it looked somewhat promising from trailers - a love story bridging two cultures, some elements of drama, interesting locations, the result was quite disappointing. The acting is unnatural, amateurish. There are continuity gaffes, like deep wounds healing in a day or two. Various plot lines are not developed, so you have no idea why the situation arose, why person is doing these (often stupid) things, and basically you DON'T CARE. And the ending is just about the cheesiest thing I've seen.. All in all, kudos to everyone for trying, but this is a student-level movie with a bigger budget.