IMDb
6.2 /10
57 votes

Drama · 2011 · 1h 50min
Matière grise
Balthazar is a young African filmmaker on the brink of directing his first project, The Cycle of the Cockroach, a fictional story about a young woman who survived unspeakable atrocities only to find herself committed to the same mental institution as a man driven insane by the crimes he perpetrated during the war. Potential funders for the film insist the themes are too bleak and pessimistic-they encourage Balthazar to make a "message" film that raises awareness about gender-based violence or HIV/AIDS instead. But he refuses to give up. Instead of telling his production team the news, Balthazar continues preparations for the film without financing or equipment. After rehearsing a scene with each of the characters, reality blurs and scenes from the script materialize, provoking the question: Can a film like this exist only in the director's dreams? Armed with a daring and creative visual language...
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Available in United States (data from JustWatch via TMDB · click → opens in provider)
IMDb
6.2 /10
57 votes
Rotten Tomatoes
The tomato isn't ripe
Metacritic took the day off
TMDB
6.0 /10
6 votes
Letterboxd
Letterboxd didn't respond
Weighted average
6.1/10