West of May (A l'ouest de mai)
Qumra Projects
/ Feature Documentary / Lebanon, France, Qatar
In Arabic
Rated: This film has not been rated.
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Synopsis
In 'West of May', I want to describe Lebanon through the portrait of the Alayli family. This family, from the working class neighbourhood of Aiché Bakkar in Beirut, is challenged by the surges of the country's contemporary history—the economic crisis, the civil society uprising, and more recently, the explosion of August 4, 2020, which devastated part of the city. The strong bonds between father, mother and son are tested by ideological discord. In my eyes, the Alayli family is a synthesis of this country.
The battle of Sakiet Al Janzir in 2008 deeply affected Naknouk's son, Ahmad, to the point that as an adult, and despite the chagrin and opposition of his father and mother, converted to Shi'ism and developed a fascination for Hezbollah. He turned against his father and his original confession, Sunnism. Sawsan, the mother, finds herself between the father and the son, protecting the latter against the former but taking a political stand against both. She defends the values of the Lebanese civil society. Despite the deep political and ideological disagreements, father, mother, and son continue to live together, under the same roof, in joy and good humour.