‘A story of love and desire’: The silences of passions

Tunisian director Leyla Bouzid was characterized by having created a type of cinematography in which the emancipation of women, the break with traditions and the defense of women’s rights in the Muslim sphere were the main protagonists. Proof of this was his powerful debut film, ‘À peine j’ouvre les yeux’in which she recounted the Arab Spring in Tunisia from the point of view of a young high school student in search of her own destiny, moving away from the patriarchal schemes of society.

In a way, Bouzid keeps the same essence with his second feature film, “A Story of Love and Desire”which was the closing film of the 60th edition of Critics’ Week at the 74th Cannes Film Festival, as well as being at the Official Section of the 66th edition of the Seminci de Valladolid and being nominated for a César Award for Best Revealing Actor. The director takes advantage of it the conventions of the coming-of-age film to touch upon substantial issues related to the disconnection itself from the roots and especially, the difficulty of men – emphasizing Muslims – to express their wishes and feelings.

So, Bouzid, who also signs the script, decides to do Ahmed, a French student of Algerian origin, who lives in the suburbs – now ghettos from which it is difficult to get out -, who has just started studying literature at the Sorbonne. Socio-cultural barriers, prejudices and glass ceilings are evident in Bouzid’s story, albeit tremendously subtle, centered on routine gestures such as showing the backpack and identity card at the door of the faculty. However, Bouzid uses this reality to take a step forward and show the process of rediscovery and emancipation of a young man trapped in an oppressive gender role. which forces him to be sure of himself and to hide his weaknesses, his fears.

The liberation of men through the emancipation of women as an impulse

In that eagerness to show control, it arises a friction that Bouzid denounces head on: the machismo prevailing in the so-called second or third generation immigrantson how young people in the suburbs reproduce patriarchal, sexist and misogynistic social roles (“You don’t know what’s going on in the neighborhood anymore, your reputation is at stake and mine too”a friend from the neighborhood confronts Ahmed when he sees that his sister has started dating a guy who, according to this gang, doesn’t suit her.) Bouzid contrasts it with a liberating reality, that of Farah, a Tunisian student who has just arrived in Paris to study letters at the Sorbonne.

Here, Bouzid shows the social kaleidoscope that exists in the Arab world (particular emphasis on the Maghreb, where the director and her protagonists come from). If with ‘À peine j’ouvre les yeux’ the director made a strong appeal for the freedom of women in her native Tunisia, in “A story of love and desire” shows the importance of bringing this message of emancipation to the children and grandchildren of immigrants in Europe, replicating archaic behaviors and being dominated by religious fanaticism. However, the director knows how to combine this important social message with the drama that shows the passage from adolescence to adulthood.

And for this, Bouzid brings the magic of the ancient erotic poems of Arab culture, those that the imams and some religious figures have tried to bury. It is fascinating how the director invites us to rediscover the culture of the protagonists through eroticism, reciting verses from Ibn Arabi’s “The Song of Burning Desire”, written in the 12th century, or from “The Perfumed Garden”, the manual of sex written by Sheikh Nefzawi in the 15th century. On the other hand, the director knows how to capture the power of the word, how the ardent desires hide behind the words and how they provoke scenes charged with sexual tension.

The erotic of the verb. The torrid passion through words

Add to that that the director focuses the object of desire on his male protagonist, capturing the fine lines of his stylized body, from the face to the legs. Although the young man falls madly in love with his classmate, Bouzid focuses on him the most physical part of him. Of course, this phase of discovery and openness to desire and emotional expression are his tandem of actors. Zbeida Belhajamor fascinates with her presence, she has an innate inner strength and she feels that struggle of a woman who had to constantly defend her autonomy.

Belhajamor is great, but here the great discovery is Sami Outalbali, known internationally for being Rahim in ‘Sex Education’. Also a well-known model, Outalbali exudes sensuality as well as shyness, something she has already shown in the magnificent miniseries ‘Fiertés’, where she has already shown signs of becoming a clear successor to Tahar Rahim. Undoubtedly, his work in “A Story of Love and Wish” is one of his first major roles.

Bouzid makes an exquisite feature film. “A story of love and desire” exudes passion from every pore of her. Perhaps the best way to define it is with the beauty and ardor of one of the verses of “The fragrant garden” that is recited in the film itself: “When the mutual operation is complete, it begins with an animated fight in which the two protagonists have fun, kiss and intertwine. Soon comes the joy, following the contact of the pubis. With the pride of its power, the man works like the hand of the pestle, and the woman skilfully collaborates with lascivious undulations “. Bouzid reaffirms himself in the line of the new wave of French directors of North African origin who advocate individual freedom and the breaking of chains.

Note: 8

The best: The eroticism that emerges from every scene in which verses are recited. The passion that Sami Outalbali and Zbeida Belhajamor transmit.

Worse: Its small distribution in Spanish theaters.