Omar la Fraise, Elias Belkeddar’s debut feature, premieres on France 4 on Thursday, May 21, 2026 at 9:10 p.m. Shown in the Midnight Screenings at the Cannes Film Festival in 2023, the film teams Reda Kateb, Benoît Magimel and Meriem Amiar to track a pair of gangsters on the run in Algiers.
Omar la Fraise
Film | 2023
In theaters: May 24, 2023
Broadcast on France 4: Thursday, May 21, 2026 at 9:10 PM
Drama | Runtime: 1h32
Directed by Elias Belkeddar | Screenplay: Elias Belkeddar, Jérôme Pierrat
Starring Reda Kateb, Benoît Magimel, Meriem Amiar
Nationality: France
Omar, nicknamed Omar la Fraise, is an old-school gangster forced to lay low in Algeria. With Roger, his loyal accomplice, he ekes out a living on petty schemes after having long dominated French organized crime. Far from their former life, the two men must contend with a daily reality that no longer fits their legend.
The film blends a manhunt tale with a portrait of aging gangsters and a chronicle of Algiers. Elias Belkeddar brings together professional and non-professional actors, aiming to capture a mosaic of speech patterns, cultures, and stories. The filmmaker also embraces a streetwise nickname—funny, fierce, and full of legend.
Trailer for Omar la Fraise
These two gangsters with an unbeatable swagger make a perfect duo. You can tell that for his debut, director Elias Belkeddar had a ball making it. A comedy with gripping action scenes, brutal moments, and stunning natural scenery set in the heart of Algiers — not something you see every day. And we’re seriously entertained by these characters, a cheeky nod to Scarface from the paupers.
But most of all, it’s the two actors who leave the strongest impression. We’ve known Magimel and Kateb for years, yet we’ve never seen them like this. The former throws himself headlong into self-mockery, while the latter plays a furious, unhinged gangster forced to keep a low profile to dodge prison. Humor is everywhere, even in the protagonist’s nickname. This “Omar the Strawberry” may terrorize Algiers, but we can’t help but laugh at him just for being named, as well as at the ever-shifting backstories behind him.
Unveiled at the 2023 Cannes Film Festival in the Midnight Screenings, Omar la Fraise marks Elias Belkeddar’s feature debut after a string of scripts and collaborations. The film centers on the collaboration between Reda Kateb and Benoît Magimel, with Meriem Amiar also on board, in a tale where the Mediterranean tragicomedy takes pride of place.
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