The Ugly One

Michel and Lili meet on the beach in Beirut, capital of Lebanon. We see glimpses of their lives, with a focus on particular events: a terrorist attack and the disappearance of a child. Who are Michel and Lili? What do they have to do with the attack?
The screenplay for The Ugly One was written at the request of director Eric Baudelaire by Masao Adachi, about whom Baudelaire made the documentary The Anabasis of May and Fusako Shigenobu, Masao Adachi and 27 Years Without Images, which screened two years ago in Rotterdam. In the 1970s and 80s, Adachi was part of the extreme left-wing Japanese Red Army movement. The JRA fought not only in Japan, but also in Lebanon, where Adachi lived for many years, and where he actively supported the Palestinian revolution.
On the soundtrack, we hear Adachi reminisce about this period and reflect on film and politics. Images of contemporary Beirut are interspersed with scenes featuring Michel and Lili.

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