About 40 percent of Lebanon's population is Christian. Apparently many, but the number is shrinking, like the privileged society of the rich people Beirut, La Vie and Rose constitute. They pass on their wealth from one generation to the next, and deal with the unstable conditions of the region by attaching and scouting for economic opportunities in the ever-changing circumstances. In their world, money can be made when disasters strike, and one can party to lighten the mood. It is an attitude that seems eccentric – if not outrageous – and is reserved for the few who can afford to live in security, both from injury and from the need to secure daily necessities. But the benefits they enjoy also lead to a certain isolation: They are dressed in beautiful clothes, live in beautiful houses and pass the realities of normal life only in transit – safe in their expensive, bulletproof cars. They have contact with each other and are connected by a similar past, but seen in perspective, their existence is bittersweet, as their golden age is over – and it will not return.

decadence

In the opening scene, the camera hovers over the sea and arrives at the Beirut shoreline at sunset, while the voices of a man and a woman tell a story. We'll see them soon: a middle-aged couple, tanned and fine. They remember how, when the war with Israel ended in 1982, they made T-shirts with their friends. Their names were printed on the back, while on the front it read "Live and tan, summer 82". The text was placed around the image of an Israeli boat at sunset. "War or not war, life goes on. The good life goes on, I'm sure, "says the man. “Stay with us for a week and see how we live – enjoying life, simply. You don't think this is Beirut. "

Apart from the women's Botox mania, everything about them is characterized by good taste.

And their incredible life unfolds on the canvas for over an hour, it's aristocracy in the Middle East. Their world is not at all similar to what the Middle East usually appears in the media. They are multilingual, elegant and engaged in various aristocratic activities, and find it quite natural, for example, to emphasize the importance of having a beautiful garden, with peacocks and gardeners to take care of it. Their pretentious priorities are more fascinating than flashy. For example, it feels almost incredible when a woman remembers when she was kidnapped: Of all things, she tried to persuade the kidnappers to play music for her. You get the feeling that if the world went down tomorrow, their first impulse would be to bring out the silver cutlery and ask to have it refurbished, just in case.

Among the film's protagonists we find Sheik Maurice Torbay and members of the Edde family. Born and raised in abundance, and with solid education and style, they do not have the same need to showcase their wealth as the newly rich. Apart from the women's Botox mania, everything about them is characterized by good taste. Their world is draped in their own aesthetics, which Motjer captures in beautiful footage. You can be upset by all this luxury and decadent freedom, and you can't help but wonder what it is like to live this way.

An alien species

The desire to penetrate their reality, combined with the stories, the dazzling luxury and Motjer's remarkable images – all pique a viewer's urge to keep looking. The camera goes into the luxurious parties, floating around in slow motion, looking behind the veil that separates these people from life outside. The images of women in perfect attire such as dancing and small talk while the men smoke a cigar are sometimes experienced surreal. The feeling of floating around in an exclusive world creates a bubble feeling, an invisible veil that sets this group apart from the waiters and other staff who look after their needs – and who look at them from the outside, just like the audience. In a way, it feels like viewing a foreign species, one that is about to die out, with an existence that seems both attractive and peculiar.

But their existence is not just happiness. Belonging to a small circle and – most of all – a world now only found in photo albums gives them an aura of loneliness. Inside their privileged bubble, they keep alive the mentality of the past, and endeavor to preserve and rebuild the legacy of the greatness of the past. But this does not bring back their world, it only maintains the shadow of nostalgia. For the world has already moved on, and nothing can bring back the brilliance of the past.

Translated by Lasse Takle