Written by director Nacer Khemir and veteran Italian screenwriter Tonino Guerra (
L'Avventura,
Amarcord), this vibrant 2006 fable was inspired partly by the work of the Sufi mystic Rumi. As an aged dervish and his intrepid granddaughter head across a vast desert toward a religious festival, he tells her about a hermit prince, his tale augmented by their traveling companions. A scene with genies rising from the sand is startling, and cinematographer Mahmoud Kalari (
Offside) conjures magic from an array of pastels, shimmering lights, and enigmatic ruins. In Arabic and Farsi with subtitles. 95 min.
By
Andrea Gronvall
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