Beaucoup Parler

Amre and Pascale live and move around within the same residential area in Paris. He is an immigrant from Egypt without papers for 17 years, she is a filmmaker and critic. When Amre asks Pascale for help in dealing with the authorities, she asks him if she can film how they fare. Beaucoup parler / A Lot Talk: what Amre can’t express in words in French – his thoughts, his fears and living circumstances – Pascale attempts to gauge and translate. An excruciatingly funny, honest process of understanding in which baker Karim pragmatically intervenes from time to time, being well aware of all the scattered experiences it entails. And so the two of them, she ladylike, he mischievous, put on a real-life migration fairy tale in their neighbourhood. Both of them simultaneously play themselves and the exaggerated roles which populate debates about immigration not just in France. For despite a mix of French, Arabic-French and Google Translate, true gibberish is far from being reached. It’s the language of the immigration office that is by far the least comprehensible in this clear-sighted film about opportunities in life and loss of chance. (Christiane Büchner)

Pascale Bodet is a French director of documentaries and fiction movies. Her interest is primarily in comedy and she seeks to achieve a certain comedic tone in each and every movie she makes. A first retrospective of all her films was organized in Argentina in 2022 at BAFICI. A partial retrospective was held at Punto di Vista in March 2023.

Director Pascale Bodet. Screenplay Pascale Bodet. Cinematography David Grinberg. Editing Agnès Bruckert, Serge Bozon, Pascale Bodet. Music Dode's Ka-Den. Sound Design Benjamin Laurent. Producers Michèle Soulignac, Cédric Walter. Production companies The Dark (Bordeaux, France), Les Films de Carry (Saint-Clément, France). With Amr Hanafy.

Films: 2003: Impeccables Garde-à-vous (cartoon documentary, co-directed by Vincent Julliard). 2006: Horezon. 2007: Le Carré de la fortune / The Square of Fortune (documentary). 2011: Complet 6 pièces / 6-Piece Suit (short film). 2013: L’abondance / Abundance (documentary). 2014: Manutention légère / Light Handling (short film). 2015: L’art / Art (documentary). 2018: Porte sans clef / No Key. 2019: Presque un siècle / Nearly a Century (documentary). 2020: Baleh-Baleh (documentary). 2021: Vas-tu renoncer ? / Edouard and Charles. 2025: À la dure / The Hard Way (short film). 2026: Beaucoup parler / A Lot Talk.