North American Premiere
Hamad (Adam Bessa) arrives in Strasbourg on the hunt for a fellow Syrian exile, his “cousin,” Sami. Could he be the notorious prison interrogator who tortured countless adversaries of the Assad regime? The refugee community receives his inquiries with suspicion. The war may be over, but that only makes it harder to recognize your enemy. And the scarred, terse, brooding Hamad doesn’t seem like he’s bringing gifts from home. Then again, who can vouch for Sami?
Jonathan Millet’s crisp, menacing thriller keeps us guessing as Hamad circles his target, convinced in his bones but unable to definitively prove that he’s found his man. As to what he means to do with him, that too can be inferred — there’s a secret support network lurking in the shadows — but it’s not even clear that Hamad has settled on the end game.
Critics have been quick to draw parallels with Spielberg’s Munich. Millet’s movie is leaner and tighter, largely playing out across close-ups of Bessa’s pensive, pained face — until we finally sit down and get to know Tawfeek Barhom’s “Sami” in a couple of chilling late scenes.
Adam Bessa, Tawfeek Barhom, Julia Franz Richter, Hala Rajab, Shafiqa El Till, Sylvain Samson
France/Germany/Belgium
2024
In French, Arabic and English with English subtitles
At International Village
At Fifth Avenue
Book Tickets
Indigenous & Community Access
Indigenous Access Tickets Community Access Tickets Ticket Donation Requests
Credits & Director
Producer
Pauline Seigland
Screenwriter
Jonathan Millet, Florence Rochat
Cinematography
Olivier Boonjing
Editor
Laurent Sénéchal
Original Music
Yuksek
Jonathan Millet
After studying philosophy, Jonathan Millet filmed in over fifty countries for image databases, capturing remote regions and learning to convey atmosphere through his lens. His debut feature-length documentary, Ceuta, Douce Prison (2013), was shown at over 60 international festivals, followed by Tell Me About the Stars (2017) and La Disparition (2021). He directed several acclaimed short films, including Et Toujours Nous Marcherons, which was nominated for a César Award in 2018. Ghost Trail is his first fiction feature film.
Filmography: Ceuta, Douce Prison (2013); Tell Me About the Stars (2017); The Wake (2017); La Disparition (2021)
Missing VIFF? Check out what's playing at the VIFF Centre
Hanging by a Wire
The Himalayas, Aug 22, 2023: a cable car bearing 8 passengers (six of them schoolkids) is left dangling 900 feet above the ground when two out of three cables snap. This nailbiting documentary recounts the increasingly frantic rescue attempts.
The Sun Never Sets
At the suggestion of her much older (divorced) boyfriend, Wendy (Dakota Fanning) takes a summer to reevaluate her life and date other people. She's reluctant at first, but then reconnects with an old flame... A gentle indie comedy from Joe Swanberg.
A Sad and Beautiful World
This Lebanese love story chronicles the romance between a level-headed businesswoman and a romantic restauranteur across several decades in wartorn Beirut. It's funny, charming, melancholy and you'll feel it all.
American Doctor
One of the most powerful documentaries of the year, this puts us smack in the open wound that is Gaza, filtered through the eyes of three American surgeons (of Palestinian, Jewish and Zoroastrian backgrounds) compelled to do their utmost to alleviate harm.