Product Description Made in 1984, this is the first film in Nacer Khemir's desert trilogy. A traveling writer and teller of fables, here Nacer applies his age-old skills to film, the first in his highly regarded Desert Trilogy that includes the Dove's Lost Necklace and Bab'Aziz - the Prince Who Contemplated His Soul. Khemir creates an exotic world when a young teacher arrives to take over a school isolated in the shimmering desert. Legendary figures materialize out of wells and the desert itself, groups of children hurry through a labyrinth of underground corridors, the teacher is whisked away to a mysterious rendezvous and never returns. Nothing is explained. Legend, tradition and fate hang heavily over this community and he does so with a richly expressive visual style aided by superb use of color. Review A meditation on the lost grandeur of Arab civilization. --Seattle Arab and Iranian Film Festival
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About the Director NACER KHEMIR Tunisian director Nacer Khemir kick-started his multi-award winning desert trilogy with Al-Haymun (The Wanderers of the Desert). This gentle drama begins with a teacher's arrival in a village school situated in the middle of the desert; he assumes control and administration of the charges, and begins to adjust to life in the region, prompting a slice-of-life portrait of the day-to-day in the Middle East. Khemir, however, intercuts these lyrical observations of the school, the teacher and the various students with startling fantasy elements that pull from centuries of Middle Eastern lore and demonstrate influence by The Arabian Nights. As the narrative rolls forward, mythical characters spring from nearby wells and dunes of sand; the local children scuttle through a strange subterranean labyrinth; an odd ship washes up in the desert; and the teacher treks off to an undefined meeting and never returns. Khemir unexpectedly turns his onscreen landscape into the intersection between the routine day-to-day of desert life and centuries of indigenous legend - giving the story itself a shimmering magic realist quality. See more
Reviews
4.3
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J**E
Five Stars
Beautiful sufi movie, as all sufi teachings full of symbolism which require full attention
S**S
Recommended
When you first watch Wanderer's of the Desert, you are hit by the starkness of the desert landscape and immediately transported to a semi-mythical village somewhere in the Tunisian desert. I found that I had to really pay attention to the film's story and I must say that it does indeed require concentration to fully appreciate a some sort of spiritual message that Nacer Khemir is trying to portray. I gave this review 3 stars because of the uninteresting extras (A picture gallery tat are just stills from the film). I would have loved a director's commentary so that I could analyse the film more and perhaps an interview with Mr. Khemir himself. Other than that I would recommend it for someone who wants to watch something different.
K**A
Beautiful but difficult movie
It will be a different experience for most audience, since the movie is very unique.It has both political, social as well as spiritual undertones.The barrenness of the desert is in stark contrast to what we, the audience who are watching it in our living room, are used to. The minimalistic arrangement of life, and despite lack of material clutter how joy, laughter, emotion and human drives grow and flow, worth pondering. The strength of the movie is in its mystical appeal.All the characters acted extremely well, even the little boy.If you accept the movie the way it is, you will like it. It's a poetry, and poetry is often difficult. The movie will take you to a different world. I have no suggestion for the director or the producer--since I have no idea what to say. Could it be improved? Possibly. In which way? Hard to tell, since any modification would have been a deviation from what I experienced and that might have modified the total essence that I am basing on to write this review.I recommend you watch it, but watch it in intervals, rather than in one or two sessions.
H**A
An admirable lesson of life!
A dying old man and his granddaughter engages in a journey through the desert in search of a meeting. Meanwhile through this arid environment, he will tell her about the fable of the prince that contemplated his soul through the limpid water of an oasis.Both stories shake hands along the way and we will witness admirable lessons of life and unforgettable Sufi metaphors - like the beautiful story of the three butterflies around a candle - for instance.Beautifully filmed, admirably choreographed and zealous directed. An admirable work of poetic intensity all the way long.
H**R
Three Stars
Not as inspiring as Bab Aziz but still very well made;
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Tunisian director Nacer Khemir kick-started his multi-award winning desert trilogy with Al-Haymun (The Wanderers of the Desert). This gentle drama begins with a teacher's arrival in a village school situated in the middle of the desert; he assumes control and administration of the charges, and begins to adjust to life in the region, prompting a slice-of-life portrait of the day-to-day in the Middle East. Khemir, however, intercuts these lyrical observations of the school, the teacher and the various students with startling fantasy elements that pull from centuries of Middle Eastern lore and demonstrate influence by The Arabian Nights.
As the narrative rolls forward, mythical characters spring from nearby wells and dunes of sand; the local children scuttle through a strange subterranean labyrinth; an odd ship washes up in the desert; and the teacher treks off to an undefined meeting and never returns. Khemir unexpectedly turns his onscreen landscape into the intersection between the routine day-to-day of desert life and centuries of indigenous legend - giving the story itself a shimmering magic realist quality.
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