Flee (film)

Last updated
Flee
Flee (film).jpg
Promotional release poster
Danish Flugt
Directed by Jonas Poher Rasmussen
Screenplay by
  • Jonas Poher Rasmussen
  • Amin Nawabi
Produced by
CinematographyMauricio Gonzalez-Aranda
Edited byJanus Billeskov Jansen
Music byUno Helmersson
Production
companies
Distributed by
Release dates
  • January 28, 2021 (2021-01-28)(Sundance)
  • December 3, 2021 (2021-12-03)(United States)
Running time
90 minutes [2]
Countries
  • Denmark
  • France
  • Norway
  • Sweden
  • United Kingdom
  • United States
Languages
Budget$3.4 million [3]
Box office$2 million [4] [5]

Flee (Danish : Flugt) is a 2021 independent [6] adult animated documentary film directed by Jonas Poher Rasmussen. An international co-production with Denmark, France, Norway, and Sweden, it follows the story of a man under the alias Amin Nawabi, who shares his hidden past of fleeing his home country of Afghanistan to Denmark for the first time. Riz Ahmed and Nikolaj Coster-Waldau serve as executive producers and narrators for the English-language dub version.

Contents

The world premiere of the film was at the 2021 Sundance Film Festival on January 28, 2021, where it won the Grand Jury Prize in the World Cinema Documentary section. It was released in theaters in the United States on December 3, 2021, by Neon and Participant. [7]

The film received widespread acclaim from film festivals and critics, with critical praise for animation, story, thematic content, subject matter, and LGBT representation. It also incorporates archival film footage of events in Afghanistan from the time Amin fled. [8] The film was frequently ranked one of the best films of 2021, [9] [10] [11] [12] and garnered numerous accolades, mainly for animated and documentary categories including Best Feature Film at the Annecy International Animation Film Festival and Best Animated Feature – Independent at 49th Annie Awards, both making the first animated documentary film to win.

The film was selected as the Danish entry for the Academy Award for Best International Feature Film, [13] where it was selected as one of the five finalists and became the second foreign-language animated film after Waltz with Bashir (2008). The film was also nominated in the Best Documentary Feature and Best Animated Feature categories, becoming the first film ever to be nominated in all three of those categories.

Plot

The film is presented in the form of an animated documentary; animated scenes depict Amin's past and present, interspersed with archival footage.

Amin Nawabi is being interviewed in Denmark by director Jonas Poher Rasmussen, who has known Amin since they were teenagers. Jonas is making a documentary about Amin's life, including his escape from Afghanistan to Denmark as a refugee. Amin has not shared the full details of his story with anyone, including his boyfriend Kasper, whom he plans to marry. The trauma of his past affects Amin's ability to settle down, and he considers a position away from Kasper in the United States as a postdoctoral researcher at Princeton University.

Amin begins by sharing stories of his childhood in Kabul with his mother Tahera, sisters Fahima and Sabia, and his older brother Saif. Amin's father is not in their life, having been imprisoned as a perceived threat following the outbreak of the Soviet-Afghan War. Saif is forced to flee from police regularly to avoid being drafted to fight. After the Soviet Union withdraws from Afghanistan, the family flees Kabul due to the impending invasion by mujahideen forces. They fly to Russia, where they meet Amin's oldest brother Abbas, who is currently living in Sweden having fled Afghanistan years earlier. Abbas arranges for human traffickers to smuggle the family to Sweden. While waiting to leave Russia, they are forced to stay indoors, as they are staying in the country illegally. Amin's sisters are the first to be smuggled, being placed on a freight container on a cargo ship with dozens of other refugees. The two survive but are traumatized due to the difficulty of the journey.

In the present, Jonas expresses surprise that Amin's siblings are still alive and living in Sweden, having previously thought Amin had no living family. Amin reveals that he keeps the truth hidden for fear he will be sent back to Afghanistan if it is revealed that he did not come to Denmark as an orphaned refugee as he claimed. Amin and Kasper tour a prospective house for them to live in after they are married; Kasper expresses concern about Amin's ability to stay in one place for an extended period. In the past, Amin, Saif, and Tahera flee Russia by truck with a group of fellow refugees. The group boards a boat that will bring them to Sweden across the Baltic Sea. The boat encounters bad weather during the trip, causing the engine to die. After several days adrift, they are discovered by a Norwegian cruise ship, whose crew contact the Estonian Border Guard to take custody of the passengers. Amin and his family are held captive in Estonia for six months before being deported back to Russia.

In the present, Amin decides to accept the position at Princeton, causing an argument between him and Kasper; he leaves and stays at Jonas's home. In the past, Tahera falls sick after their return to Russia. Saif takes responsibility for the family, deciding to send Amin out of Russia first using more expensive but more reliable smugglers, who tell him he must say he is an orphan to avoid being deported back to Afghanistan. Amin makes it to Ukraine, but is sent on a flight to Copenhagen rather than Sweden. Once there, he turns himself over to the authorities as a refugee and makes contact with Abbas, who instructs him to continue to lie about his family members being killed. Several years later, Amin visits Abbas and his sisters in Stockholm. After admitting to them that he is gay, Abbas takes him to a gay club, telling him that the family always knew about his sexuality.

In the present, Jonas visits Amin in New York City, where he expresses a desire to settle down, having constantly been on guard throughout his life. He returns to Denmark, where he reunites with Kasper. Four months later, the two are married and have purchased a house together.

An epilogue reveals that Amin's brother and mother eventually escaped Russia and that the fate of their father still remains unknown.

Voice cast

A number of the voice cast members are credited as anonymous, including the voice of Amin at ages 13–15, Abbas, Akthar Nawabi, Tahera, and young Tahera.

Production

In January 2021, it was announced Riz Ahmed and Nikolaj Coster-Waldau would serve as executive producers on the film, and narrate an English-language dub version of the film. [14]

Animation

The core animation team behind the film consisted of around ten animators and cleanup artists in Denmark, as well as a team of coloring artists in France. Each scene would go through a rough pass of animation where the team checked the acting of the characters and the intention. Once Poher Rasmussen approved it, the animators would tighten up the drawings in terms of the look of characters. The cleanup team would then check for the correct brushwork – meant to seem inky and sketchy as if from a graphic novel to give maturity to the line work – before finally shipping it off to the coloring team to embellish the characters. "It was a pretty big machinery", noted Ladekjær. [15]

Release

Flee had its world premiere at the Sundance Film Festival on January 28, 2021. [16] Shortly after, Neon/Participant, Curzon Artificial Eye and Haut et Court acquired US, British and French distribution rights respectively. [1] [17] [18] The film was initially set to have its world premiere at the Cannes Film Festival in May 2020, but the festival was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. [19] It was also screened at the 2021 Toronto International Film Festival and the 2021 New York Film Festival in September 2021. [20]

The film was released in select theaters for New York and Los Angeles by NEON and Participant on December 3, 2021 [21] with a nationwide expansion on January 21, 2022. [22] The film became available on Hulu on February 8, 2022. [23]

Reception

Box office

In its opening weekend, the film earned $24,794 from four theaters for a per screen average of $6,198. [24]

Critical response

Flee received widespread critical acclaim, with Sundance juror Kim Longinotto calling it "an instant classic" at the festival's awards ceremony. [25] It holds a 98% approval rating on review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, based on 197 reviews, with an average rating of 8.5/10. The critics consensus reads "Depicting the refugee experience through vivid animation, Flee pushes the boundaries of documentary filmmaking to present a moving memoir of self-discovery." [26] On Metacritic, the film has a score of 91 out of 100 based on reviews from 33 critics, indicating "universal acclaim". [27] It is also the sixth best reviewed film of 2021 in the website, as well the best reviewed animated film of that year. [28]

Metacritic reported that Flee appeared on over 33 film critics' top-ten lists for 2021, one of only two animated films to appear on the list for the year, alongside The Mitchells vs. the Machines . The film ranked first and second on two lists. [29]

Parasite director Bong Joon-ho listed Flee as one of his favorite films of 2021, [30] and wrote a letter, calling it "The most moving piece of cinema I saw this year." [31]

UK Film Review gave a 5-star rating. [32] BBC listed as one of the twenty best films of 2021. [33] Flee also ranked as the seventh best film of 2021 in an IndieWire poll to 187 critics and journalists. [34]

Accolades

At Sundance, Flee won the Grand Jury Prize in the World Cinema Documentary section. [35] The film was subsequently screened at the Annecy International Animation Film Festival, where it won Best Feature Film. [35] Flee also won The Cinema for Peace Award for The Most Valuable Documentary of the Year in 2022.

At the 2021 Toronto International Film Festival, the film was second runner-up for the People's Choice Award for Documentaries. [36] It is also nominated for two Critics' Choice Documentary Awards, for Best Feature and Best Director. [37]

The film won NBR Freedom of Expression and one of the top documentaries at National Board of Review, [38] a nomination for Golden Globe Award for Best Animated Feature, earned two categories for British Academy Film Awards, won an Annie Award for the Best Animated Feature – Independent and four Dorian Awards.

AwardDate of ceremonyCategoryRecipient(s)ResultRef.
Sundance Film Festival February 3, 2021 World Cinema Documentary CompetitionFleeWon [39]
Annecy International Animation Film Festival June 19, 2021Best FeatureWon [40]
Gan Foundation Award for DistributionWon
Best Original Music for a Feature FilmUno HelmerssonWon
Millennium Docs Against Gravity September 9, 2021Grand Prix Bank Millennium AwardFleeWon [41]
Toronto International Film Festival September 18, 2021 People's Choice Award for Documentaries FleeRunner-up [36]
CLIT International Film FestivalOctober 17, 2021Best Feature - Ativa-te! categoryWon [42]
Out on Film October 22, 2021 Best International Film - Audience AwardWon [43]
Montclair Film Festival November 2, 2021Audience Award for World CinemaWon [44]
Bruce Sinofsky Prize for Documentary FeatureJonas Poher RasmussenWon
Newport Beach Film Festival November 3, 2021Best Animated Feature - Audience AwardFleeWon [45]
Critics' Choice Documentary Awards November 14, 2021 Best Documentary Feature Nominated [37]
Best Director Jonas Poher RasmussenNominated
Manchester Animation Festival November 25, 2021Best Feature FilmFleeWon [46]
Gotham Independent Film Awards November 29, 2021 Best Documentary Feature Won [47]
National Board of Review December 3, 2021 Top DocumentariesWon [38]
NBR Freedom of ExpressionWon
New York Film Critics Circle December 3, 2021 Best Non-Fiction Film Won [48]
Detroit Film Critics Society December 6, 2021 Best Documentary Won (Tied with "Summer of Soul") [49]
Best Animated Feature Nominated
British Independent Film Awards December 5, 2021 Best International Independent Film Jonas Poher Rasmussen, Amin Nawabi, Monica Hellstrøm, Signe Byrge Sørensen Won [50]
Washington D.C. Area Film Critics Association Awards December 6, 2021 Best Animated Feature FleeNominated [51]
Best Documentary Nominated
European Film Awards December 11, 2021 Best Documentary Film Won [52]
Best Animated Feature Film Won
European University Film Award Won [53]
New York Film Critics Online December 12, 2021Best DocumentaryWon [54]
Boston Society of Film Critics Awards December 12, 2021 Best Animated Film Won [55] [56]
Chicago Film Critics Association Awards December 15, 2021 Best Animated Film Won [57]
Best Documentary Film Nominated
Los Angeles Film Critics Association Awards December 18, 2021 Best Animated Film Won [58]
Utah Film Critics AssociationDecember 18, 2021Best Animated FilmWon [59]
Non-English Language FeatureWon
Best DocumentaryRunner-up
St. Louis Gateway Film Critics Association Awards December 19, 2021 Best Animated Film Nominated [60]
Best DocumentaryWon
Best Foreign Language FilmNominated
Indiana Film Journalists AssociationDecember 20, 2021Best Animated FilmWon [61]
Dallas–Fort Worth Film Critics Association December 20, 2021 Best Foreign Language FilmRunner-up [62]
Best Documentary Film Runner-up
Russell Smith AwardWon
Florida Film Critics Circle Awards December 22, 2021 Best Documentary Film Nominated [63]
Best Animated FilmRunner-up
National Society of Film Critics January 8, 2022 Best Non-Fiction FilmWon [64]
Golden Globe Awards January 9, 2022 Best Animated Feature Nominated [65]
San Diego Film Critics Society January 10, 2021 Best Animated Film Runner-up [66]
Best DocumentaryRunner-up
San Francisco Bay Area Film Critics Circle January 10, 2022 Best Documentary Feature Nominated [67]
Best Animated Feature Nominated
Best Foreign Language Film Nominated
Austin Film Critics Association January 11, 2022 Best Animated FilmNominated [68]
Best DocumentaryNominated
Georgia Film Critics Association January 14, 2022Best PictureNominated [69]
Best Animated FilmNominated
Best Documentary FilmNominated
Best Foreign Language FilmNominated
Toronto Film Critics Association January 16, 2022 Best Animated Film Won [70]
Best Documentary Film Runner-up
North Dakota Film SocietyJanuary 17, 2022Best PictureNominated [71]
Best Animated FeatureNominated
Best Documentary FeatureWon
Best International FeatureWon
Denver Film Critics SocietyJanuary 17, 2022Best Animated FilmWon [72]
Non-English Language FeatureNominated
Best DocumentaryNominated
Seattle Film Critics Society January 17, 2022 Best Animated FilmWon [73]
Non-English Language FeatureNominated
Best DocumentaryNominated
Houston Film Critics Society Awards January 19, 2022 Best Animated Feature FilmNominated [74]
Best Documentary FeatureNominated
Best Foreign Language FilmNominated
Online Film Critics Society Awards January 24, 2022 Best Documentary Nominated [75]
Best Animated Feature Nominated
Best Film Not in the English Language Nominated
Alliance of Women Film Journalists Awards January 2022Best DocumentaryFleeWon [76]
Best Animated FilmNominated
Best Non-English-Language FilmNominated
Robert Awards February 5, 2022 Best Documentary Feature Monica Hellström, Signe Byrge Sørensen, Charlotte de la Gournerie and Jonas Poher RasmussenWon [77]
Best Editing Janus Billeskov JansenWon
Best Sound Design Edward Björner and Tormod RingnesWon
Best Score Uno HelmerssonWon
London Film Critics Circle Awards February 6, 2022 Documentary of the YearFleeNominated [78]
Technical Achievement Award Kenneth Ladekjær (animation)Nominated
Cinema Eye Honors March 1, 2022 Outstanding Non-Fiction Feature FeatureJonas Poher Rasmussen, Monica Hellström and Signe Byrge SørensenWon [79]
Audience Choice PrizeJonas Poher RasmussenNominated
Outstanding DirectionNominated
Outstanding ProductionMonica Hellström and Signe Byrge SørensenNominated
Outstanding Original ScoreUno HelmerssonNominated
Outstanding Sound DesignEdward Björner and Tormod RingnesNominated
Outstanding Graphic Design/AnimationKenneth LadekjærWon
The UnforgettablesAminWon
American Cinema Editors Awards March 5, 2022 Best Edited Documentary – Feature Janus Billeskov JansenNominated [80]
Independent Spirit Awards March 6, 2022 Best Documentary Feature FleeNominated [81]
Annie Awards March 12, 2022 Best Animated Feature – Independent Won [82]
Outstanding Achievement for Directing in an Animated Feature Production Jonas Poher Rasmussen, Kenneth LadekjærNominated
Outstanding Achievement for Editorial in an Animated Feature Production Janus Billeskov JansenNominated
Outstanding Achievement for Writing in an Animated Feature Production Jonas Poher Rasmussen, Amin NawabiNominated
British Academy Film Awards March 13, 2022 Best Animated Film FleeNominated [83]
Best Documentary Nominated
Critics' Choice Awards March 13, 2022 Best Animated Feature Nominated [84]
Best Foreign Language Film Nominated
Golden Reel Awards March 13, 2022 Outstanding Achievement in Sound Editing – Feature Documentary Edward Björner, Jens Johansson, Fredrik Jonsäter, Rune Van Deurs, Bengt ÖbergNominated [85]
Dorian Awards March 17, 2022Best LGBTQ FilmFleeWon [86]
Best Animated FilmWon
Best DocumentaryWon
Best LGBTQ DocumentaryWon
Best Non-English Language FilmNominated
Producers Guild of America Awards March 19, 2022 Outstanding Producer of Documentary Motion Pictures Nominated [87]
Bodil Awards March 19, 2022 Best Documentary Won [88]
Bodil Special Award Kenneth Ladekjær (animator) and Jess Nicholls (art director)Won
Academy Awards March 27, 2022 Best Animated Feature Jonas Poher Rasmussen, Monica Hellström, Signe Byrge Sørensen and Charlotte De La GournerieNominated [89]
Best Documentary Feature Nominated
Best International Feature Film Denmark Nominated
GLAAD Media Awards April 2, 2022 Outstanding Documentary FleeNominated [90]
Satellite Awards April 2, 2022 Best Animated or Mixed Media Film Nominated [91]
Best Documentary Film Nominated
Best Foreign Language Film Nominated
European Film Awards December 10, 2022 Lux Award Nominated [92]

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References

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  2. ↑ "Flee". Sundance Film Festival . Archived from the original on March 7, 2021. Retrieved January 28, 2021.
  3. ↑ "Sundance Documentaries Showcase Enhanced Storytelling Through Animation". Variety . Retrieved January 20, 2022.
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  5. ↑ "Flee (2021)". Box Office Mojo . IMDb . Retrieved March 4, 2022.
  6. ↑ 6 Indie And Foreign Animated Features Building Buzz For Oscars 2022|Cartoon Brew
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  8. ↑ "Flee – Denmark | Nordic cooperation". norden.org. Retrieved 2022-02-20.
  9. ↑ Sharf, Zack (2021-07-14). "'Flee' Trailer: Start the Oscar Buzz, This Animated Doc Is One of the Best Films of 2021". IndieWire. Retrieved 2022-02-20.
  10. ↑ "The 50 best films of 2021 in the US, No 5: Flee". The Guardian. 2021-12-13. Retrieved 2022-02-20.
  11. ↑ Wilkinson, Alissa (2021-12-02). "In Flee, one Afghan refugee's story comes to vibrant, animated life". Vox. Retrieved 2022-02-20.
  12. ↑ Hadadi, Roxana. "Flee movie review & film summary (2021) | Roger Ebert". rogerebert.com/. Retrieved 2022-02-20.
  13. ↑ "'Flee' selected as Danish Oscar entry". Danish Film Institute. 25 October 2021. Retrieved 25 October 2021.
  14. ↑ Barraclough, Leo (January 22, 2021). "Riz Ahmed and Nikolaj Coster-Waldau Board Sundance Animated Documentary 'Flee' (Exclusive)". Variety . Retrieved February 3, 2021.
  15. ↑ Aguilar, Carlos (2021-12-06). "'Flee': Creating a New Narrative Language for the Animated Documentary Oscar Contender". IndieWire. Retrieved 2022-02-20.
  16. ↑ Debruge, Peter (December 15, 2020). "Sundance Film Festival Lineup Features 38 First-Time Directors, Including Rebecca Hall and Robin Wright". Variety . Retrieved February 3, 2021.
  17. ↑ Day-Ramos, Dino (February 2, 2021). "Participant Teams With Neon on Jonas Poher Rasmussen's Documentary 'Flee' – Sundance". Deadline Hollywood . Retrieved February 3, 2021.
  18. ↑ Rosser, Michael (February 2, 2021). "Buzzy Sundance film 'Flee' lands UK, France, Australia deals (exclusive)". Screen International . Retrieved February 3, 2021.
  19. ↑ Roxborough, Scott (June 3, 2020). "Cannes 2020 Lineup Unveiled". The Hollywood Reporter . Retrieved February 3, 2021.
  20. ↑ Jeremy Kay, "‘Titane’, ‘Benedetta’, ‘Flee’ on New York Film Festival main slate". Screen Daily , August 10, 2021.
  21. ↑ Milligan, Mercedes (August 18, 2021). "Award-Winning AniDoc 'Flee' Arrives in Theaters December 3". Animation Magazine. Retrieved September 6, 2021.
  22. ↑ "NEON on Twitter: "FLEE has been called one of the "Best Movies of 2021" by Vanity Fair, IndieWire, Vulture, Vox, http://RogerEbert.com, CNN, and NPR Starting this Friday, 1.21, Jonas Poher Rasmussen's award winning documentary expands to more cities: http://fleemovie.com"" . Retrieved 2022-01-19– via Twitter.
  23. ↑ Milligan, Mercedes (February 8, 2022). "News Bytes: Cyber Group Acquires Graphilm, 'Flee' on Hulu, Aardman Goes Wild in Art & More".
  24. ↑ "Domestic 2021 Weekend 49". Box Office Mojo . Retrieved December 8, 2021.
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  28. ↑ "Best Movies, By Year". Metacritic. Archived from the original on February 13, 2022. Retrieved February 13, 2022.
  29. ↑ "Best of 2021: Film Critic Top Ten Lists". Metacritic. Archived from the original on 2022-01-18. Retrieved 2022-02-04.
  30. ↑ "Bong Joon-ho's Favorite Movies of 2021 Include 'Don't Look Up' and 'The Mitchells vs. the Machines'". World of Reel. 19 August 2019. Retrieved 2022-02-16.
  31. ↑ "Bong Joon Ho on FLEE" – via Twitter.
  32. ↑ "Flee". UK Film Review. Retrieved December 3, 2021.
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