Samir Benyala

During the Algerian War (1954-1962), many impoverished young Algerian men, known as "Harkis", volunteered to join the French Army. Salah and Kaddour find themselves under the orders of Lieutenant Pascal. But as the conflict draws to an end, the prospect of independence looms. The outlook for Harkis seems bleak. Lieutenant Pascal confronts his superiors, insisting that every single man in his platoon must be evacuated to France.

Cape York, Australia, 1876. After having lived among the Aborigines for seventeen years, Narcisse, a former cabin boy in the French merchant navy, is forced to return to live with his maternal family in France. ​