Ponto de partida

Fabrice Eboué and Thomas Ngijol find themselves propelled back in time to the French West Indies during the period of slavery. This not only serves to recall certain elements of slavery, but will also enable our duo to evolve in their apprehension of the world when they return to our contemporary times.

The film excels in its portrayal of white landlords, with Étienne Chicot, Franck de la Personne, Catherine Hosmalin and Joséphine de Meaux all pathetic, fat, grotesque and horrible. The fable works for our two characters, Fabrice Éboué and Thomas Ngijol, one a parvenu but treated with condescension, the other a righteous catch who seeks himself in a religion without believing in it. They are confronted with slavery, where they are treated like animals.

The subject didn't lend itself to a caustic, rough-and-tumble film, as comedian Fabrice Eboué knows how to do, but this film has the merit of existing, as French cinema is not very prolix on this subject and on this period of French history. There's also an astonishing scene in which our two friends help a couple unite so that they can exist in the future.