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Cast
El Hedi ben Salem
as Self (archive footage)
Rainer Werner Fassbinder
as Self (archive footage)
Abd El-Kader Jarrary
as Self (Ben Salem's Son)
Hafsia Mellaim
as Self (Ben Salem's former wife)
Viola Shafik
as Self (voice)
Renate Leiffer
as Self
Irm Hermann
as Self
Karl Scheydt
as Self
Rudolf Waldemar Brem
as Self
Hans Hirschmüller
as Self
Movie Info & Details
Release Year2011
Runtime1h 38m
LanguageArabic
CertificationNR
GenresDocumentary
Votes6
DirectorViola Shafik
WritersViola Shafik
TypeFeature Film
Rating6.3 out of 10
Cast10 credited
Also Known AsMy Name Is Not Ali
About My Name Is Not Ali
Travelling between Germany, France, and Tunisia, Viola Shafik reconstructs and deconstructs the unknown life story of El Hedi Ben Salem through interviews with his companions and family members as well as archival material. With openness and slight naivety, the interviewees explain how “Ali” became an oriental object of projection for the Fassbinder group, while El Hedi Ben Salem, the human being, was overlooked in order to establish the foreigner as “other.” A no-frills examination of a piece of German and Munich film history.
Directed by Viola Shafik, My Name Is Not Ali leans on a strong ensemble — El Hedi ben Salem, Rainer Werner Fassbinder, Abd El-Kader Jarrary — to carry a story that balances spectacle with character.
The film landed with audiences for its craft and performances, and remains one of the most talked-about documentary titles of 2011.
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