FILM SCREENINGS

I Want to See

2008. France/Lebanon. Written and directed by Joana Hadjithomas, Khalil Joreige. With Catherine Deneuve, Rabin Mroué. The sight of the devastation wrought by the 2006 Israeli incursion into Southern Lebanon elicits a strong emotional impact on both the spectator and the film's actual witness, Catherine Deneuve. She is guided by Lebanese thespian Rabih Mroue, who grew up in this war-torn region. The two embark on a road trip from Beirut, where the famous—and famously detached—actress is visiting for a gala. The initial uneasiness of being trapped in a car with a near-stranger gives way to polite curiosity and, once the landscape bears its scars, intimacy. This unique composite of scripted scenes, documentary footage, and improvised travelogue makes a nation's heartbreaking tragedy all too apparent.