Sundance-winning documentary RETURN TO HOMS will be screening at the Exeter Picturehouse on WEDNESDAY 9 JULY at 6:30pm, followed by Q&A with director, Talal Derki.

The film follows nineteen-year-old goalkeeper-turned-insurgent, Abdul Basset, as he and a ragtag group of comrades fight to protect the captive inhabitants of the besieged city of Homs. As one of the unlikely leaders of the Syrian rebellion Basset has become something of a totemic figure, with Le Monde labelling him an 'icon of the revolution'. His protest songs and dark sense of humour reflect his dream of peaceful liberation from Assad's oppressive regime, but when their hopeful uprising is met with violent resistance by government forces, he and his companions take up arms. Trailing the fearless crew over a two-year period, this remarkable film sees the city Basset once knew and loved, deserted and torn apart beyond recognition. As audacious hope turns to despair, Derki presents the real desperation behind the bloodied faces and waving rifles that have become Syria's refrain.

New York Times
"Like its heroes, we are pulled into the conflict with frenzied immediacy as we experience one city, the dreaded rites of passage of two friends, and ultimately an entire nation torn apart by the fog of war"

The Huffington Post
"...gives the world a gut-wrenching glimpse into life in the isolated city."

Indiewire
"Portrays the struggle from the inside, from about as far from the filter of mainstream media as one can get, capturing tense shootouts and the extremes of revolutionary spirit in unnerving detail ”

TICKETS CAN BE PURCHASED THROUGH THE FILM'S WEBSITE, OR DIRECT FROM PICTUREHOUSE CINEMAS

http://www.returntohoms.com/#!uk-theatrical-release/cmxj