Heiners Filmseiten – Hands in the Air

Hands in the Air – Hands Up (Les mains en l’air)

German title: Les mains en l’air – Hände hoch!
Greek title: Τα χέρια στον αέρα
Russian title: Руки в воздухе
Original title: Les mains en l’air

Alternative titles:
Τα χερια στον αερα

Drama – France
Production year: 2009
Movie length: 90 minutes

Director: Romain Goupil

Movie description:

In March 2067, Milana looks back on her life, on the momentous events that took place sixty years ago... In 2009, Milana, an illegal Chechen immigrant, is a pupil in a Paris school. Her friends include Blaise, Alice, Claudio, Ali and Youssef. One day, Youssef is deported because his papers are not in order. His friends suddenly feel afraid. Swearing that they will always remain together, Milana’s friends contrive a plot to prevent the same fate from befalling her...

Milana tells us what happened to her 60 years ago in 2009 ... A pupil in a primary school in Paris and originally from Chechnya, Milana is threatened with deportation. Her friends swear to do all they can to stay together ... The film’s charming acknowledgement of the secret hideouts, notes, codes, and communications introduce a 21st century childhood founded on a social and political conflict, where the young gang’s sense of play cannot be separated from their sense of camaraderie and resistance.

In a popular quarter in the north of Paris, identity checks and the deportation of foreigners become increasingly frequent. The police soon set up shop outside schools, scandalizing teachers and parents who solidarize with the cause of undocumented families. Bonded by a great friendship, four children hide for several days, afraid their friend, a Chechen refugee, will be arrested and sent back to his country.

Boy Actors