Mysterious Crime Thriller ‘Ashkal: The Tunisian Investigation’ Trailer
by Alex Billington
August 13, 2023
Source: YouTube
“Haunting and deeply disturbing.” Yellow Veil Pictures has revealed an official US trailer for an indie crime thriller titled Ashkal: The Tunisian Investigation from Tunisia, made by filmmaker Youssef Chebbi. The film premiered at last year’s Cannes Directors’ Fortnight, with stops at the Toronto Film Festival, New Directors/New Films, and Beyond Fest. The story begins when the body of a caretaker is found in the middle of a construction site in the gardens of Carthage, a new district where modern buildings are juxtaposed with abandoned sites. Set amongst derelict, half-finished apartment complexes of a former regime, the discovery of a mysterious body reveals a puzzling repetition of events. As the investigation progresses, a network of violence & corruption is uncovered throughout the city. Starring Fatma Oussaifi, Mohamed Houcine Grayaa, and Aymen Ben Hmida. Don’t write off this international thriller, it looks like it has some very unsettling mysteries to compel viewers. This is a sneaky trailer with chilling shots that will make you sit up.
Here’s the official US trailer for Youssef Chebbi’s Ashkal: The Tunisian Investigation, from YouTube:
In the Gardens of Carthage, a district of Tunis initiated by the former Regime which construction stopped at the beginning of the Revolution, two cops, Fatma and Batal, find a burnt body in one of the lots. As construction slowly resumes, they start looking into this mysterious case. When the event repeats itself, the investigation takes a puzzling turn. Ashkal: The Tunisian Investigation, also known as just Ashkal, is directed by Tunisian filmmaker Youssef Chebbi, director of the doc Babylon, and co-director of the film Black Medusa previously, plus a few other shorts. The screenplay is written by François-Michel Allegrini and Youssef Chebbi. Produced by Farès Ladjimi; co-produced by Christophe Lafont, Ales Pavlin, and Andrej Stritof. This initially premiered at the 2022 Cannes Film Festival in the Directors’ Fortnight sidebar, and it already opened in France earlier in 2023. Yellow Veil Pictures will debut Chebbi’s Ashkal: The Tunisian Investigation in select US theaters on August 18th, 2023, then on VOD starting August 22nd. Curious?