Screened to acclaim in Competition at Cannes, this wrenching film by Xavier Beauvois (Villa Amalia) is based on real events.
In a Cistercian monastery in Algeria, 1990s: Eight French monks live and work, dispensing advice and running a surgery. The Abbot, Brother Christian (veteran French actor Lambert Wilson) studies the Koran in order to gain insight into Islam and better understand the local community they serve. High in the stunning Atlas mountains, it’s a seeming paradise.
But the monks are targeted after conflicts rise between the government and fundamentalist Islamic groups as part of the ongoing Algerian Civil War. Amid killings of immigrants and female teachers, they must decide whether to stay and continue to serve, or flee to France to protect themselves.