Film Movement (www.filmmovement.com), the exclusive distributor of award-winning independent and foreign films, has released WELCOME, a French, English and Arabic language drama from Director Philippe Lioret, featuring French screen star Vincent Lindon and it is available now on DVD, and Peachy Deegan thinks it's great. The film paints a portrait of two men wrestling with their own issues of lost love and alienation, while exploring larger contemporary dilemmas like illegal immigration and covert border crossings. A unique, touching film, WELCOME is sure to delight every viewer with a heart, no matter what country you're from. If you are reading us in the USA, it will make you feel even luckier to be an American.
WELCOME is an emotionally affecting drama about intersecting lives, unlikely friendships, and the hope of new beginnings. Bilal (Firat Ayverdi), a 17-year-old Kurdish refugee, has spent the last three months of his life traveling across Europe, in an attempt to reunite with his girlfriend who recently emigrated to England. But his journey comes to an abrupt end when he is stopped on the French side of the Channel. Having decided to swim across, Bilal goes to the local swimming pool to train. It is here he meets Simon (Vincent Lindon), a middle-aged swimming instructor, who is privately reeling in turmoil as he dreads an imminent divorce from his wife (Audrey Dana). Despite their differences, the two men discover that they have much in common, and a strong bond emerges between them. Simon decides to take Bilal under his wing, realizing that he too must risk everything to reach the other side of happiness.
WELCOME is 105 minutes in length and in French, Arabic and English with English subtitles
Starring internationally acclaimed actor, Vincent Lindon.
All Film Movement DVD releases include a short film—this month’s selection, THE BERLIN WALL, competed in dozens of film festivals worldwide, including the Hamptons Int’l FF, Jerusalem Int’l FF and Hong Kong Int’l FF, where it won the Jury Prize for Best Short. This satirical story of a man who tries to reconnect with his past by rebuilding the Berlin Wall in his backyard was directed by British filmmaker, Paul Cotter, who is also the director behind Film Movement’s upcoming DVD release—BOMBER—available on October 5th, 2010.
The DVDs will be available at Film Movement (www.filmmovement.com), and also through major retailers such as Blockbuster, Amazon, Netflix and Passion River Films.
Additional information can be found here.
Acclaim for WELCOME:
Winner – 2009 LUX Prize – European Parliament LUX Competition
Winner – Prize of the Ecumenical Jury & Label Europa Cinemas Award – Berlin Int’l FF
Winner – Grand Prize for Dramatic Feature (Crystal Heart Award) – Heartland FF
Official Selection – Karlovy Vary Int’l FF, Seattle Int’l FF, Istanbul Int’l FF, Shanghai Int’l FF, Helsinki Int’l FF, Seoul Int’l FF, Mumbai Int’l FF, Dubai Int’l FF and more…
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About Film Movement:
Launched in 2003, Film Movement is a full-service North American distributor of award-winning independent and foreign films, based in New York City. Film Movement has released more than 200 feature films and shorts from 37 countries on six continents, including top prize winners from Sundance, Cannes, Venice, Toronto, Berlin, Tribeca and other prestigious festivals. Film Movement releases its films through numerous distribution channels, including thousands of art-house cinemas, universities and libraries; home video (Blockbuster, Netflix and Amazon); television outlets (Sundance Channel, HBO, IFC and Showtime); Cable Video on Demand (including its very own branded cable VOD platform—Film Festival on Demand—available in over 30 million US homes); In-flight Entertainment (Continental and Alaska Airlines) and broadband outlets (iTunes, Hulu, YouTube and Babelgum). For more information, please visit www.filmmovement.com.
