Sahara

2017 1h 26m FR

😐

6.0

MID

⭐

5.5

IMDB

★6.0TMDB · 298★5.5IMDB · 3,388

AdventureAnimationComedyFamily

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

A young cobra and his scorpion best friend go on a journey across the Sahara desert to save a new-found love.

“Some stories are better left unspoiled.”

WhatsApp X Facebook Telegram

Where to watch · US

NetflixSubscription

Netflix Standard with AdsSubscription

Cast

Omar Sy
Ajar (voice)
Louane
Eva (voice)
Franck Gastambide
Pitt (voice)
Vincent Lacoste
Gary (voice)
Ramzy Bedia
Chef Chef (voice)
Clovis Cornillac
Ver Luisant (voice)
Jean Dujardin
Georges (voice)
Reem Kherici
Alexandrie (voice)

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Pierre Coré
Writers: Nessim Debbiche, Stéphane Kazandjian, Pierre Coré
Languages: English, French
Countries: Canada, France

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 7

RUNTIME

Did you know

86 minutes exactly — the "classic feature" runtime most directors aim for.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 7

ERA

Did you know

Released 9 years ago.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 7

WORLD

Did you know

Dialogue crosses 2 languages: English, French.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 7

WORLD

Did you know

International production across 2 countries: Canada, France.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 7

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by Jérôme Rebotier. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 7

CAST

Did you know

Omar Sy and Louane and Franck Gastambide carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 7

WILD

Did you know

IMDB entry: tt4466894 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Pierre Coré directs. Jérôme Rebotier scores. Runs lean at under 100 minutes. Produced in Canada, France. Dialogue in English, French.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

186 minutes exactly — the "classic feature" runtime most directors aim for.
2Released 9 years ago.
3Dialogue crosses 2 languages: English, French.
4International production across 2 countries: Canada, France.
5Original score by Jérôme Rebotier. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
6Omar Sy and Louane and Franck Gastambide carry the top of the cast.
7IMDB entry: tt4466894 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
8Classified under 8 themes, including "sahara desert", "anthropomorphism", "prejudice", "desert".

The technical file

Original score: Jérôme Rebotier
Sound: Bernard Gariépy Strobl
Runtime: 86 min · 1h 26m
Status: Released
Box office: $8,061,843
Original language: FR
Certification (US): L
IMDB: Sahara (2017)
IMDB rating: 5.5/10 · 3,388 votes
MPAA: TV-Y7

Awards

1 nomination total

Also by

Pierre Coré

Trailers & featurettes

Watch the pieces

Community reviews

What people are saying

CinemaSerf2026-10-01
★ 6/10
Given that most humans can't cohabit in the desert, it's hardly surprising that snakes can't either! "Ajar" is a young poisonous one who lives amidst the arid conditions and who has to avoid the ridicule of his compatriots as he has yet to shed his first skin and the peckish tribesmen who would love nothing better than to roast him over an open fire. Meantime, in the relative luxury of the oasis the princess "Eva" is fed up being manipulated, and so when an arranged marriage is presented to her she vows to escape. That's when she encounters the dashing young "Ajar" and despite some initial reservations, they begin to become friends. Fate has other plans for the pair, though, as the local Tuareg manage to catch her and so he and his best pal "Pitt" the scorpion have to race to her rescue before there is nothing left to save. I don't know if this really bears too favourable a comparison with the bigger budgeted content from planets Disney and Pixar editorially, but the standard of the animation is really quite good and plenty of effort has been spent on crafting the look of characters, the colouring and the shading - and that works quite well to present us with it's dry and hot location. The story? Well that's a bit more all over the place and it seems to borrow rather inconsistently from contemporaneous references from elsewhere that don't always work - especially if you're older, but there's still some enjoyable mischief to be had and who doesn't like a cartoon scorpion? This isn't a film you will recall for long, but to be honest that could be said of a great many formulaic animated adventures - and this is certainly no worse than many.

Production companies