To me, this movie is perfection.

When a movie has you begging for it to end not even half way through it's pure crap. We've all seen this movie and this characters millions of times, nothing new in it. Don't waste your time.

A great movie, one of the best of this year. There was a bit of confusion at one point in the plot, but nothing serious.

Exactly the movie you think it is, but not the movie you want it to be.

If you happen to like Flamenco music and/or North-African music, you will enjoy this film just for this. I happen to like both and found myself watching at 10-minutes-long scenes of just music and dance without being bored and being on the contrary fascinated (the Gnawa trance scene is properly amazing). Some lines of the scenario could have been developed though. The two characters are both going to Algeria looking for their roots. But she's the daughter of an Algerian whereas he's the son of two French who used to live in Algeria when it was still French. And despite this he seems to be the one feeling the most at home when they finally reach Algeria. Highlighting that identity is not about genes, but a social construct emerging from education, familial history and personal history (at the very least). Highlighting also the difficulty of being between two cultures, and the difficulty of being always sent back to a culture people ascribe to you because of your biological roots, putting you in a box doing so. Anyway this is something just showing on the surface briefly. I am not sure Gatlif was intending to explore this, I feel rather that the principal character of the film is music, especially when I remind myself that Gatlif also wrote the soundtrack. However if he wasn't intending it, this would be somewhat more remarkable, because we could assume Gatlif's subconscious is expressing itself here, the director being himself a former French of Algeria. But this would be exactly what is problematic in how the feminine character is welcomed: assigning feelings according to origins, without knowing anything of the person's history. So I won't assume this and will stay on the great feeling left by the trance scene: fascinated. And will consider definitely that music is the hero here, because music originating long ago like Flamenco and Gnawa is far more than entertainment and can even be a catharsis tool.

A spiritual journey for the characters and audience alike. I saw this film at a film festival not knowing what to expect. There is not much plot or drama and for viewers seeking those they might be disappointed. What this film does have though is spirit and at intoxicating levels too. The cinematography combined with the music and the journey of the characters combine to put the receptive audience in a kind of trance. An especially memorable scene is a 15 - 20 minute long scene in which the female heroine is exorcised Algerian style, building slowly to a trance. The whole scene is filmed as one shot and the camera is more of a participant than an observer. An experience not to be missed.

I watched this film on French TV recently, and I was pleasantly surprised. I'll admit the main reason I watched this was Romain Duris, who I was so impressed with in De battre mon coeur s'est arrêté. This is actually a really good movie, the music especially really fits well with the scenarios, which is what one would expect from a film by Tony Gatlif. The direction is good and the story is told at quite a pace, so you won't get bored.I watched this without subtitles but that didn't cause me a problem at all. Some parts are really funny (i.e. Zano trying to talk Spanish) and others really sad (Zano crying). I'd certainly recommend watching it especially if you fancy something different from the hum-drum American-ised film style. I really enjoyed seeing this, as it isn't entirely dependant on language, but instead has scenes where the emphasis is on movement, vocalisation and music.After I watched this I found I kept thinking about it - always the mark of a film that connects with you in some shape or form. However, I warn you, this film may give you the urge to go road-tripping to Algeria. 8/10

I saw this film at the Chicago International Film Festival, and I must say that I enjoyed it. I was really skeptical because I had thought that all French movies were just stupid sex-filled movies. Sure, this film has its share of nudity, but it doesn't distract from the story. You know nothing about these characters once the film starts except that they like to eat and drink naked in an apartment. For the next 1.5 hours you get to know little snippets from the past of their lives and hope to know more about what they want and what they need. On the path to Algeria, they evolve more as friends and as people to the audience, and not just as techno-music-blaring punks. By the climax of the film, the true characters come out of their young shells. They deal with their past in emotional ways (I won't spoil it) and leave the audience with a sense of accomplishment as the credits roll.I do have complaints that stem from the way it was presented. First of all, the subtitles in the version I saw were inconsistent, meaning that sometimes people would speak and I would see no subtitles. Otherwise, this is a great movie that I highly recommend.movie 9.7/10 presentation 8.7/10