DC Area Premiere

Decades in the making, THE BETRAYAL tells the moving story of Thavisouk Phrasavath, who fled war-torn Laos in the 1970s and settled in the United States.

During the Vietnam War, Phrasavath’s father served in a guerilla army secretly funded by the CIA. He imagined building a bright future for himself and his family through allegiance to the army and their American backers. However, after the U.S. disavowed the guerilla army, his life was threatened. In a departure shown through hauntingly poetic imagery, the father fled Laos and his family followed, though not all together.

Phrasavath, his mother and his siblings reunited in Brooklyn, New York. They adjusted to their new, distressing surroundings while his father’s whereabouts remained a mystery. Ultimately, their betrayal by the US government was only the beginning of the trials they would face.

THE BETRAYAL moves seamlessly between space and time, connecting scenes from Phrasavath’s past in Laos and his early years in Brooklyn with current interviews. Expressive shadows and textures merge with straightforward moments, creating a phantasmagoric effect and a haunting film that captures the turmoil of a family torn apart by war.

Ellen Kuras, known for her award-winning work as director of photography on films by Spike Lee (4 LITTLE GIRLS, BAMBOOZLED) and Michel Gondry (ETERNAL SUNSHINE OF THE SPOTLESS MIND, BE KND REWIND), shoots THE BETRAYAL with visual eloquence, illustrating the uncertainty Phrasavath and his family experienced. The film is her directorial debut.

-Giovanna Chesler