Flee
Recounted mostly through animation to protect his identity, Amin looks back over his past as a child refugee from Afghanistan as he grapples with a secret he’s kept hidden for 20 years. A thrilling documentary made with a blend of animation and archive footage tells an immensely powerful tale of a gay Afghan survivor and his need to confront his past in order to truly have a future. Amin arrived as an unaccompanied minor in Denmark from Afghanistan. Today, at 36, he is a successful academic and is getting married to his long-time boyfriend. A secret he has been hiding for over 20 years threatens to ruin the life he has built for himself. For the first time he is sharing his story with his close friend. FLEE weaves together a stunning tapestry of images and memories to tell the deeply affecting and original story of a young man grappling with his traumatic past in order to find his true self and the meaning of home.
- Released: 2021-06-17
- Runtime: 90 minutes
- Genre: Animation, Documentaries
- Stars: Rashid Aitouganov, Daniel Karimyar, Fardin Mijdzadeh, Milad Eskandari, Belal Faiz, Elaha Faiz, Zahra Mehrwarz, Sadia Faiz, Georg Jagunov, Navid Nazir, Hafiz Højmark, Denis Rivin, Vadim Nedaskovskij, Viktor Melnikov, Mikhail Belinson, Ditte Graa Wulff, Bo Asdal Andersen, The Dungeon Master, Behrouz Bigdeli, Christian Torp Carlsen, Gustaf Georg Lindström, Tormod Ringnes, Susanna Azevedo, Mauricio González-Aranda, Shabbir Showne, Amin Nawabi, Rashid Aitouganov, Jean-Pierre Pernaut
- Director: Jonas Poher Rasmussen
Comments
- fciocca - 15 January 2023
The use of animation works well for this documentary. A sad film that immerses the audience into the complex story of Amin.
It is unusual to see movies like "Flee". Basically, it is a documentary, but in this case the story is told through animation. I liked this choice because it is a language that in this case can express some concepts that a traditional film simply cannot do, due to physical technical limitations. It is the first time that I personally see a project like this. The director did an amazing job in exploring all the different chapters of Amin's difficult story. We get to understand the state of mind of this young boy, not only through words but most and foremost through abstract images. This is where the true strength of "Flee" lies. It is not an easy watch, and going through all of the abuses and injustices that this afghani family needed to suffer, puts you on a different perspective. The story-telling is exceptional, the soundtrack is composed of amazing musical pieces that perfectly sets the context and the emotions of the protagonist.
This is a really good movie that definitely flew under the radar and deserved more attention. It is original and engaging. I liked the animation style: it is fascinating in its simplicity. There are some real archive video clips, which added more dynamicity to the plot. Props to the director and the whole team for achieving such an amazing result. If you are into documentaries and you are looking for something different than the average, this might be it. - thebeachlife - 3 July 2022
Compassion
This is the second picture this year that made me reconsider my views on animation.
Animation in a documentary is surprisingly a good match, it makes Amin's story even more emotional and warmer however tragic it is. I myself have never been a refugee or sought asylum but I unfortunately related to a big part of what I saw. It makes me feel grateful to everyone who participated in this storytelling, which resulted in this very sincere and beautiful film. Thank you so much.
