The film, which takes us to Beirut, 25 years after the end of a bloody civil war, to see whether forgiveness and reconciliation are possible in a country still fractured by sectarian strife, will be showing at Cinéma du Parc (Montreal) and at Cinéma Le Clap (Quebec City) starting October 2.
Special screenings will take place on October 2 and 3 at Cinéma du Parc with the filmmaker and other guests in attendance for Q&A sessions following the screenings. The documentary will then be presented on October 4 as part of a special program on Lebanon, organized by Festival Cinéma du Monde de Sherbrooke, at the Centennial Theater in Sherbrooke. A discussion will also be held on October 17 at Cinéma Moderne, to mark the anniversary of the uprisings in Lebanon which began on October 17, 2019, uprisings which are picking up again following the massive explosions that ripped apart the city of Beirut.
SYNOPSIS
How can decades of hostility between neighbours be resolved? Filmmaker Marlene Edoyan follows two women of different faiths through Beirut many years after the end of the Lebanese civil war. The film transports us into the lives of Hayat and Wafaa and into the city’s different neighbourhoods. Through the personal stories and memories of the two female protagonists, we understand why the city still feels divided by invisible boundaries, and wonder whether forgiveness and reconciliation are possible in a city and country still broken by political and religious ideology. The rifts may run deep but change is in the air.
TRAILER: vimeo.com/448688691