Viva La'ldjerie

This is a thoughtful, troubling film about relationships, Algiers, and the historical processes which shape them. Subtly political, it offers considerable insight into what is going on in North Africa. Outstanding acting by main and supporting actors and excellent writing and directing. This film is a jewel, worth watching numerous times.

…or is it only the 5%? At least in terms of the cinema, my image of Algeria is still largely shaped by Gillo Pontecorvo’s The Battle of Algiers . Yes, things have changed, and for so many Algerians of today, that are not of a “certain age,” the events that Pontecorvo depicted, are as distant as the Peloponnesian War. Fortunately Amazon, and in particular, the Prime program, suggested that I update my knowledge, for free (!), and so I did. Nadir Moknèche, the Director, was born in Paris, raised in Algiers after the death of his father when Nadir was three, and returned to Paris at the age is 16. He has produced and directed a number of films on the Maghreb, its people, and France. He is sometimes compared with the Spanish director, Pedro Almodovar. Indeed, a too hasty read of the film’s blurb led me to believe this film was produced by Almodovar. Within the first ten minutes there is some passionate love-making and full frontal nudity, a sufficient (and pleasant) jolt that says that Pontecorvo’s historical concerns won’t even make the back-burner. Goucem, brilliantly played by Lubna Azabal, is 27, and has been having an affair with an older married physician for the previous three years. She knows that her “biological clock” is ticking. Her mother, played by Biyouna, is another favorite actress of Moknèche. They live in one room, and sleep together in a double bed. Her mother had been a nightclub dancer, and still dreams of those “glory days.” Moknèche shoots several scenes with the mosque in the background. Indeed, one scene shows Biyouna’s former nightclub converted into a mosque; shades of Cordoba. Sometimes Goucem walks in public clothed as a woman would in Western countries; at other times, having internalized the code of public permissibility in various parts of the city (I remember it well from Riyadh), they wear various forms of the hijab. Prostitution? Of course, and a friend in the building is one, but all her clients are “cousins.” The crushing overpopulation and attendant unemployment is always in the background. In Algeria, as in so many other countries, much spiritual sustenance is obtained from the fortune-telling quacks. Many seek salvation in another fashion: emigration! Terrorism? The threat from the fundamentalists is always in the background, but one of the movie’s lines is: “Bouteflika says that it is finished.” And there are several scenes with the (updated) Bay of Algiers in the background, including the large freighters which now frequent the port. Moknèche features two fairly strong, independent-minded women making their own way, in the Algeria of a decade ago, a society still fractured culturally, which one day I hope to observe in person, inch’allah. 5-stars for a much needed update on the lay of the land.

Good movie overall. Acting is good. Plot not so much. It like a soap opera.

It was ok.. A bit sad to see how women in North Africa are still oppressed

I did not enjoy this movie and tried hard to get into it. It has nothing to do with the language or the country; think it was just a stupid storyline and I stopped watching it after several minutes. Yes, this is IMHO.

Subtle, yet complex. Touches on many issues (women, unemployment, terrorism) without dictating how you should feel about it. Beautiful views of Algiers, women, music....

It was not believable.

This movie was lovely. I was happily surprised by many elements not mentioned in the review. It is intelligently rendered and deals with hard topics with much less violence than they are usually handled. It came up on a search for Almodovar and I see why. The gentle pacing and complexity of the film are just lovely.

VIVA LALDJERIE film événement ELLE immanquable STUDIO 1h30 de bonus avec LE MONDE et FRANCE INTER, un film de NADIR MOKNECHE avec entre autres LUBNA AZABAL, l'excellente BIYOUNA et NADIA KACI. 2 DVD "Joué par un trio d'étonnantes comédiennes, un film captivant plutôt trois fois qu'une " LE CANARD ENCHAINE " Ce film épouse le malaise difficile mais souvent comique d'une Algérie d'aujourd'hui en quête de repères éthiques ou politiques, ose s'attaquer à la représentation sexuelle et fait le portrait sensible de trois femmes... le charme agit " PREMIERE NADIR MOKNECHE le PEDRO ALMODOVAR Algérien

j'ai retrouvé l'ambiance de ma jeunesse algerienne,et la meme tendresse pour ce petit peuple qui vaut mieux que ce que l'on en dit!film bien fait et tres bien défendu par ses acteurs