The Long and Winding Road: ‘Sirât’ Review

Films that derive their central plot from a long journey have a long road to travel to get what they are trying to portray right. In some cases, the audience is delivered a new classic to be enjoyed forever. However, more often than not the audience is left wondering why the journey began in the first place. Sadly, Oliver Laxe’s tale of a father’s search for his daughter in the Moroccan desert, ‘Sirât,’ falls in the latter category. The film just didn’t hit. The resolution that you would seek at the end of the road just isn’t there. Feeling nonsensical at times, ‘Sirât’ zig zags through storylines with no direction while delivering stunning performances and beautiful cinematography, leaving a hollow shell of a film behind.

Luis, along with his son, Esteban, are searching the Moroccan desert for his daughter. Spending days looking for her at a rave, the party is put to a stop by the military with the implication that a massive war has just broken out leaving the partygoers in some form of danger. Not to be deterred and following other attendees, Luis and Esteban find themselves a part of a small band of people heading across the desert looking for the next rave and, hopefully, Luis’ daughter. If this sounds suspect, trust, we will absolutely get to the story and the many issues that are contained therein.

Beauty of the Land

For it’s rather large short comings (Large comings?), ‘Sirât’ is a marvel of cinematography. The way in which Laxe captures the landscape is exquisite. I found myself more often than not paying attention to the surroundings of the characters as opposed to the characters themselves. The camera work helps to drive up the tension that is being developed by the story. ‘Sirât’ displays an excellent understanding of sound and music, using it to ground the characters. It provides a break from the chaos and a connection between Luis and his travelling companions that may not have been able to be bridged had it not been for the unifying force of music. Indeed, the sound along with the cinematography are equally as important as the actors themselves, serving as characters in their own right.

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While there wasn’t much to work with as far as story, the cast was magnificent in using what they were provided. Sergi López embodies a broken father searching for his daughter. The audience feels his pain as if it was their own daughter and they had embarked alongside Luis. The supporting cast of rave attendees served their roles quite well. Joshua Liam Herderson, Stefania Gadda, Richard “Bigui” Bellamy, Tonin Janvier, and Jade Oukid portrayed their characters as if they were seasoned veterans of the silver screen, when in actuality, for many of them, this was their first film outting. The chemistry that exists between the cast is the true driving factor between the overall score that I provided this film. They made something with no direction, something worth investing in.

Mad Max: Fury Rave

Where ‘Sirât’ truly falls short of hitting the mark is with it’s storytelling. The plot just didn’t make sense. It was filled with a litany of plot holes. When it seemed as if there was a direction, the entire idea of that plotline seemed to be left by the wayside completely. This left entire plot points with absolutely zero resolution.

SPOILER ALERT for those who may see the film. It’s hard to point any of what I want to say out without providing context, so….you’ve been warned.

The most glaring admission throughout the plot is the most important. The only thing you ever learn about Luis’ daughter is that she’s been missing for 5 weeks and she’s an adult. Why is he looking for her? A good question that finds no answer. Halfway through the film, it’s as if this plotline was completely forgotten. Moreover, the subplot that there is military, seemingly World War III level, action going on around the characters, but there is no expansion on that whatsoever. The military shows up, breaks up the party, and then they leave. They are essentially campus police breaking up a frat party.

The films lack of direction made it incredibly hard to follow and genuinely enjoy, which is unfortunate as this was one of my most anticipated films for the end of the year 2025. ‘Sirât’ bounces from one place to another dragging a bewildered audience along with them. They are taken from a rave, up a mountain, and then, for some reason, they’re in a minefield. The film as far as it’s plot can only be described as a cluster of chaos from start to finish.

Final Thought:

‘Sirât’ took a world of potential and drained it of anything that could resemble a cohesive film. While it is a beauty to behold, filled with incredible performances, the film is mostly hallow with absolutely zero plot direction, wasting the efforts of both cast and cinematographer.

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