With its intriguing title, Costa Brava, Lebanon by Mounia Akl evokes a heavenly corner of Lebanon that resembles a Spanish region famous for its beaches. This first feature film shows how a family believes they have found refuge in the middle of nature before being overtaken by the pollution of an illegal dump.
“To be Lebanese is to have open scars and, what brings us together, is an extreme pain of loss but also a desire to rebuild”, explains the filmmaker in the press kit. Around Nadine Labaki, known as director of Capernaumbut who here embodies the mother, the atmosphere deteriorates around city dwellers whose return to a nature they hoped would be idyllic will turn into a nightmare.
A picture of present-day Lebanon
Beyond the family story she tells, Mounia Akl paints a picture of present-day Lebanon. Between the waste crisis and the explosion at the port of Beirut, the Lebanese have experienced recent tragedies that have tested their courage after a fratricidal war. If all the performers are remarkable, we are particularly touched by a little girl, embodied by the talented twins Ceana and Geana Restom, who learns to live in the heart of chaos.
Mounia Akl pays homage to the resilience of the Lebanese with this fierce and tender work proving that the Eurozoom distributor always unearths nuggets both in the field of animated cinema and live action. It would be a shame to miss Costa Brava, Lebanon which reveals both a promising filmmaker and the reality of a country plagued by corruption.