Julian Sands plays a father taken prisoner by guerrillas in 'The Trail.'
A Gaumont release (in France) of a Gaumont, LGM Cinema presentation of an LGM Cinema, Les Films du Dauphin production, in association with The Trail Ltd., France 3 Cinema, Castel Films, MIA Features, Min Films, with participation of Canal Plus, CineCinema. (International sales: Gaumont, Neuilly-sur-Seine, France.) Produced by Cyril Colbeau-Justin, Jean-Baptiste Dupont. Executive producer, Hugues Darmois. Co-producer, Pierre Spengler. Directed by Eric Valli. Screenplay, Valli, Philippe Lyon.
With: Julian Sands, Eriq Ebouaney, Camille Summers, Clint Dyer, Siyabonga Shibe.
(English dialogue)
Many facets of Africa --- from the beauty of the brush to the infamy of blood diamonds and the tragedy of child soldiers -- are incorporated into "The Trail," a ravishingly lensed widescreen tale in which the scenery is nearly always more impressive than the story. Only after extended exposition, as a young girl braves the desert in search of her missing dad, does the film really deliver, in an exciting final reel. Still, this English-lingo pic by Eric Valli is, like his "Himalaya," never less than watchable, and aimed at kids and adults alike.
After her mother dies in Europe, 14-year-old Grace (Camille Summers) returns to Africa to see her father, Gary (Julian Sands), a geologist who's taken the exploitation of Africa's resources to heart. Grace and her dad have barely a day to get reacquainted before he flies off in a tiny plane to ferry urgent supplies.
When he begins his return flight, he's whipped off course, crashes in sand dunes, and
then he's taken prisoner by black guerrillas who are also diamond poachers.
While search parties wait out bad weather, intrepid Grace sobers family friend Kadjiro (Eriq Ebouaney) from a drunken stupor to guide her through the merciless desert to find her father.
Scenes with Gary and his captors generally play better than Grace's foolish but determined trek. The poachers are angry men and combat-addled children, indignant that their continent's wealth has a way of passing them by to benefit the white man.
Grace's love for the father she hardly knows anymore is simply a given, without much cinematic exposition. Grace is played by Valli's own daughter, who looks the part but who, despite her screen dad's very British elocution, inexplicably speaks with an annoyingly flat American accent.
Kudos go to the pic's location scouts in ultra-scenic Namibia, whose desert is described as the world's oldest. The last colony in Africa, Namibia became independent only in March 1990. Pic's greatest accomplishment is to highlight contempo conditions, from spectacular natural beauty to venal exploitation.
Camera (color, widescreen), Eric Guichard; editor, Hachde ; music, Armand Amar; production designer, Stephane Makedonsky; costume designer, Catherine Caldray; sound (Dolby), Denis Martin, Sylvain Lasseur, Peter Maxwell; assistant director, Vincent Canaple; casting, Juliette Menager, Suzanne M. Smith. Reviewed at Elysees Biarritz, Paris, Jan. 21, 2006. Running time: 95 MIN.
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Date in print: Wed., Feb. 8, 2006