Far from Men

Far from Men is a 2014 French drama film directed by David Oelhoffen. Set in French Colonial Algeria, the narrative follows Daru, a reclusive, pacifist, Algerian-born French teacher of Spanish descent (Viggo Mortensen) who is also a war veteran, tasked with delivering Mohammad, a docile Algerian murder suspect (Reda Kateb), into the hands of French authorities as the Algerian War of Independence ignites. Mortensen said that, as he was making the film, he thought about "European versus native populations in America, but also about Gaza" and "the artificial country called Iraq that was created by Europeans and is now falling apart. The film is based on "The Guest", a short story by Albert Camus from his Exile and the Kingdom collection. Far from Men was selected to compete for the Golden Lion at the 71st Venice International Film Festival. It was screened in the Special Presentations section of the 2014 Toronto International Film Festival. Plot The events of the movie take place in French Colonial Algeria, on the eve of its war for independence in 1954. Daru, a French school-teacher goes about his day teaching geography to the Algerian children from nearby villages, playing with them, and giving grain to their families. One of Daru's acquaintances show up to his isolated schoolhouse to warn him about rising tensions between the Algerian resistance and the French regime.