This is first of all a gritty, realistic tale of the frenetic 48 hours in the life of Souleymane, a young Guinean man in Paris. As we follow him, in the streets and at his hostel, we pick up on other stories: of the life he’s left behind; the made-up account of his departure from Conakry; and why he really left. The film captures the difficulty of life without legal residency, and it’s the reverberating story of two unequal worlds.
Souleymane is working illegally as a cycle courier, and we see him tear-arsing around until late at night. It’s shot from accompanying bikes, with a juddering immediacy that pulls us into his world. At the pick-ups and drop offs, he’s good-natured, patient and empathetic – he delivers a pizza to a frail, elderly man and takes the time to help him. And it’s mutual. Restaurant staff smile, offer a coffee, a pastry.
