Youssef Salem is successful with Ramzy Bedia, Noémie Lvovsky, Melha Bedia. A captivating comedy that defies stereotypes.
This is the story of Youssef Salem, a 45-year-old from Marseilles who has always managed to miss his career as a writer. He finds himself, somewhat by some miracle, shortlisted for the prestigious Goncourt Prize with his new book, Le choc toxic. And this is where the trouble begins, because what Youssef has presented as fiction is nothing more than the story of his family. Lacking inspiration, he could not help but glean here and there from the lives of those around him for the better, and especially the worse. Youssef must now at all costs prevent his book from falling into the hands of a member of his family.
This new feature from writer-director Baya Kasmi is served by a fine cast, with Ramzy Bedia, Noémie Lvovsky, Melha Bedia, Caroline Guiela Nguyen, Oussama Kheddam, Abbes Zahmani, Tassadit Mandi, Lyes Salem and Vimala Pons. The film will hit theaters on January 18, 2023.
Serious questions handled happily
A sparkling and captivating comedy in which the duo formed by Ramzy Bedia, in the role of an uncomfortable and broke writer, and Noémie Lvovsky, his editor, worked well. With Ramzy in top form, the characters that revolve around him each offer their own story and personality.
Baya Kasmi rose to fame in 2011, for co-writing the screenplay for Name of the people (Cesar for Best Original Screenplay) with his partner Michel Leclerc. In 2015 he made his first film, I’m yours now, in which the viewer finds his trademark; benevolence mixed with sour humor. Baya Kasmi also collaborated with Thomas Lilti for her film Hippocrates in 2014, and created the series The Grand Bazaaron M6.
For her second feature film, Baya Kasmi has created, with the complicity of Michel Leclerc, this very French comedy about a North African family. Staging the novel, then the setbacks of this writer, she tackles serious but joyful issues, such as double culture as well as complex relationships with origins, religion or even celebrity.
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