Sirât
In his contender for the Palme d’Or, Spanish director Oliver Laxe takes us to the Moroccan desert, even as the title suggests a bridge between Hell and Paradise. Amid the twitching limbs and ecstatic faces of dancers at a rave, a man who looks distinctly out of place (Sergi López) hands out flyers, asking if anyone has seen his daughter. Together with his son and their dog, he has come a long way in hopes of finding her. When the military breaks up the gathering – citing a state of emergency and rounding up foreigners – a group of European expats manage to escape, and the father-son duo decide to follow them.
Sirāt is one of those rare films that evade classical categorisation – likely to be either loved or hated, but undeniably impactful. From the moment the camera lingers on lined, battle-scarred faces moving to rhythms felt in the body rather than heard in any conscious way, one is mesmerised by the transcendent experience. With a sound design that captures the thumping bass of diegetic music and an emphatic off-screen electronic score, the atmosphere becomes almost palpable – even for those who’ve never set foot in such a space. And this is only the point of departure. As the feature transforms into a road movie, traversing unforgiving mountain ravines and man-made danger zones, it becomes a masterclass in sustained anticipation. There are moments so genuinely shocking they startled even seasoned festival-goers who have learned to expect the unexpected at Cannes.
Produced by Pedro Almodóvar, Sirāt is already being positioned as a potential contender for Spain’s 2026 Oscar entry. Its distinguished craftsmanship is matched by the potency of its political and sociocritical commentary, resulting in a film that may not be easy to digest – but is all the more nourishing for it.
Selina Sondermann
Sirât does not have a release date yet.
Read more reviews from our Cannes Film Festival coverage here.
For further information about the event visit the Cannes Film Festival website here.
Watch the trailer for Sirât here:
Facebook
Twitter
Instagram
YouTube
RSS