Poignant tale

Review: http://www.variety.com/review/VE1117938019.html?categoryid=31&cs=1

Franco-Tunisian writer-director Karim Dridi’s latest is a poignant tale reminiscent of François Truffaut’s THE 400 BLOWS. After fleeing from his foster family, 13-year-old Khamsa returns to the Gypsy camp outside Marseilles where he was born. Not much seems to have changed since he was forced to leave. There are still late night card games, diving in the Mediterranean Sea, and high-stakes rooster fights. Now, however, his beloved grandmother is near death; his father, who sired numerous offspring with countless girlfriends, shows little interest in his welfare; and his dad's ex-wife hates him enough to denounce him to the police. Only his dwarf cousin Tony and best friend Coyote wholeheartedly welcome him back. Coyote has teamed with an Arab friend, Rachtique, who initiates the Gypsy kids into the endorphin rush of scooter-mounted purse snatching. Khamsa's innocence begins to vanish when they involve him in a series of increasingly serious crimes.