An overworked delivery app driver in Riyadh tries to branch out into bootlegging, in Ali Kalthami’s dark comedic feature debut set in the rarely seen, ultra-modern world of Saudi nightlife.
Unlucky tryhard Fahad Nassir (Mohammed Aldokhi) is, at best, mediocre at his call centre day job. He’s been showing up for work late, exhausted by his nighttime hustle working as a delivery app mandoob (courier) cruising the streets of Riyadh, filling orders to save money for his aging father’s medical treatment. When Fahad’s mistakes catch up with him and he is fired from the call centre, he decides he won’t go quietly.
Desperate and down on his luck, Fahad follows an illegal alcohol dealer back to his stash and steals six cases of counterfeit whisky he hopes to sell to the first buyers he can find. Caught up under the weight of real-world pressures while courting the comforts of delusion, Fahad has now initiated his free fall further and further into a lifestyle he is completely unprepared for.
From pioneering Saudi production house Telfaz11 comes director Ali Kalthami’s highly anticipated debut feature, a darkly comedic character drama capturing an impressive portrait of bad luck and poor decision-making. Showing a vibrant and rarely seen ultra-modern Saudi nightlife, framed by skyscrapers and sand dunes, Ahmed Tahoun’s crisp cinematography and dynamic use of colour prime the way for a standout and surprisingly physical comedic performance from Aldokhi.
NATALEAH HUNTER-YOUNG
Official Selection, 2023 Toronto International Film Festival