Shades of Claire Denis' beautiful Beau Travail resonate here, with a similar mesmerising quality of sparseness. The characters appear without introduction, and are as dry and resigned as the landscape. Just as you wonder when the narrative will begin unfold, it already has and you're hooked.
3 Reviews
Visually amazing, shocking, arresting , satisfying.
angelboy-213 October 1999
This film is amazing no other word for it, from the moment the doctor enters Port Djema, to the end of the film i was gripped both visually and mentally. The visual presence of this film combines with the plot to create and arresting piece of cinema. The ending with out giving anything away is superb and unexpected. I can not recommend this film enough!
Port Djema Takes You to a Different World
thehappyspaceman4 January 2020
I watched a subtitled version of Port Djema on YouTube a few weeks ago and found it to be a thought-provoking and sympathy-inducing film. The plot moves slowly at first, but it allows the audience to get a feel for the mood it is trying to convey, and once it is set into motion, it really gets going and culminates in an unexpected ending. The acting and the script are good, but what really sells it is the soundtrack by Sanjay Mishra (for which he won the Lifetime Vision Award at the Steven Spielberg-chaired Hamptons International Film Festival) combined with the cinematography by Yorgos Arvanitis. I felt drawn deeper and deeper into the heat of the desert and the despair of the people suffering in Eritrea in the eyes of the French protagonist, an outsider. I highly recommend this film.
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