Roschdy Zem is a great comedian who we saw recently in The Innocent by Louis Garrel and Other people’s children by Rebecca Zlotowski. Mine, in which he directs, demonstrates that he is also an excellent director. This family chronicle evokes his relatives and in particular his younger brother, played by Sami Bouajila, who changes his behavior after suffering a concussion.
“This very sweet boy suddenly started telling his four truths to everyone around him,” explains Roschdy Zem to 20 minutes, and that’s what inspired the story of the film. In his film, Roschdy Zem embodies the role of a famous and absent big brother, supported by an understanding companion played by Maïwenn. “I hope not to be as undrinkable in real life as this TV presenter is in fiction,” laughs Roschdy Zem.
A loving tribute
The actor-director fades in front of Sami Bouajila, dazzling in the skin of his younger brother, a man who breaks down social filters and unvarnishedly confides what is on his heart to a family who has infantilized him for years . “I recount the shouting matches and the difficulties that can divide us, but my film is a tribute full of love and benevolence,” insists Roschdy Zem. This is indeed what the spectator feels, feeling an immediate tenderness for the hero and his relatives, who are not always very skilful in showing their affection but are filled with great generosity.
Roschdy Zem was somewhat apprehensive about the reaction of his family to this chronicle which reveals them to the world. And all the more so since he only showed them the film once it was finished without having them validate the script he co-wrote with Maïwenn. “They reacted as I expected,” he says. And my younger brother only said one word “thank you”, which was all I expected. We understand that the latter was touched by this cry of fraternal love which encompasses the whole family. The scenes of exchanges between the two brothers are as powerful as those where everyone is together.
“I felt a bit shamelessly that my family deserved to be told,” says Roschdy Zem. We fully agree with him because, at the end of the screening, Mine have almost become “Ours”.