The Man with the Golden Soles

In 2000, the Syrian activist and documentary filmmaker Omar Amiralay proposed to make a film portrait of the self-made millionaire Rafik Hariri, who at the time was the prime minister of Lebanon. Hariri guards over his image like a hawk and is resolute in avoiding critics, such as Amiralay. The director and his leftist intellectual friends do indeed believe that Hariri is partly responsible for Lebanon’s war and poverty, and that he should be confronted about it in the interviews. But can this controversial figure look at himself with a critical eye? And then suddenly, Amiralay gets access to Hariri after all. The filmmaker observes the political boss with his wavy hair and prominent mustache, and how he always shows up in parliament with brand-new shoes. Interviews alternate with a voice-over from Amiralay, who reports on the difficult filming process with humor and self-deprecation. The prime minister turns out to be a hard nut to crack; in the end, Amiralay gets into a subtle power struggle with the controversial and often unwilling Hariri. (International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam)