Costa Brava Lebanon

The Badri family, including parents, two kids, and grandma, flees from the noise and pollution of downtown Beirut and seeks refuge in an idyllic summer house in the countryside. The picturesque surroundings, peace, and quiet are all threatened when the authorities decide to establish a landfill bordering on the property. The family meets any and all promises of an “environmentally friendly” operation with skepticism, and their suspicions are soon proven to be right.

The debris of the big city that keeps haunting the Badris even in the peaceful countryside, is used to shed light on the very real, long-standing waste crisis of Lebanon. Of course, the filmmakers have ensured that the production of this film has followed a green protocol to keep it as eco-friendly as possible. However, Costa Brava, Lebanon, remains a portrait of a family above all else. Nadine Labaki, both a star actor and the director of the Oscar-nominated feature film Capernaum (2018), plays one of the leads. The past, present, and future of Lebanon are embodied in the three generations of Badris living side by side in the summer house, while director Mounia Akl weaves a tale that packs both a political sting and elements of magical realism. A very impressive debut feature.

Atli Bjarnason (Films from the South 2021)