Berlin film fest spotlights radical youth
In L’Adieu a la nuit ( Farewell to the Night), legendary French actress Catherine Deneuve portrays a grandmother whose grandson Alex has converted to Islam and is inte- nt on joining the Islamic State jihadist group in Syria with his girlfriend. The delicate transition from adolescence into adulthood is also at the heart of Italian director Claudio Giovannesi’s La Paranza dei bambini ( Piranhas), about the youth gangs roaming the streets of Naples. The film is based on Roberto Saviano, who also cowrote the screenplay. Berlin: From a young Frenchman tempted by Islamic radicalism to guntoting teen gangs in Naples, the Berlin film festival is shining a spotlight on disaffected youth struggling to find their place in a complex world.
In L’Adieu a la nuit ( Farewell to the Night), legendary French actress Catherine Deneuve portrays a grandmother whose grandson Alex has converted to Islam and is intent on joining the Islamic State jihadist group in Syria with his girlfriend.
The story, which takes place over several days, chronicles Deneuve’s desperate battle to prevent her grandson from leaving. “This is a boy who’s very, very angry,” Deneuve told reporters in Berlin on
Tuesday. “From the moment I discover that he’s been radicalised, I try to understand him and not judge him.”
The film, being shown out of competition at the Berlinale, was directed by veteran filmmaker Andre Techine and inspired by journalist David Thomson’s
2014 book The French Jihadists about the allure of extremism. Techine said he was fascinated by the contrast between “this extremely dangerous and violent viewpoint, and a female character who’s very grounded, has strong roots.” The movie captures “the end of childhood”, he said, and shows how “for these characters who have decided to uproot their lives, religious study and military preparation have become their reason for living”.
The delicate transition from adolescence into adulthood is also at the heart of Italian director Claudio Giovannesi’s La Paranza dei bambini ( Piranhas), about the youth gangs roaming the streets of Naples.
The film is based on the eponymous novel by antimafia author Roberto Saviano, who also cowrote the screenplay.
“It’s a story inspired by true events. The Piranhas are these groups of young boys who have lived a life devoid of power,” Saviano said at the Berlin film festival.