
Feature film — 1980
Ali in Wonderland (1980)
In the 1980s, barely 18 years after Algeria's independence, Algerian immigration to France massively fueled the construction industry, responding to a demand for hard, undervalued labor. Behind the idea of "selective immigration," these men were recruited primarily for their bras and their knock-kneed hands, shaped by construction sites. Invisible yet essential, they built roads, buildings, and infrastructure, often at the cost of precarious conditions. Ali, an Algerian crane operator in France, philosophically accepts the harassment faced by immigrants like himself on construction sites and in daily life. He hopes to escape his situation with the money he wins in the lottery, and from the top of his crane, he allows himself to dream, observing the world through binoculars. One day, the jackpot falls...
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A high-signal pick with 2 votes.
Office National pour le Commerce et l'Industrie Cinématographique (ONCIC)
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Director: Ahmed Rachedi
On screen
Cast & crew

Djelloul Beghoura
Ali

Mustapha El Anka

Saïd Hilmi
Salah

Corinne Brodbeck
Thérèse

Albert Delpy
Jean-Christophe

Larbi Zekkal

Mustapha Kateb

Ahmed Snoussi
Ahmed

Henri Poirier

Andrée Tainsy

Jean Valmont
Donato Bastos
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