7/10
I saw this and Kechiche's second film, Games of Love and Chance, in anticipation of Blue Is the Warmest Color
2 June 2013
I liked this one quite a bit more than Games of Love and Chance, though I didn't anywhere near love it. It drags a lot of the time, and could have told the same story at a half an hour shorter without losing a thing. Habib Boufares stars as a 60-something year-old man who has been laid off from his job at the shipyard. With the help of his family and friends, he plans to open a restaurant on a broken down old boat he acquires. Things do not quite go as planned. There's a lot of great development with the characters. I admit, the boredom came mostly from the earlier scenes, but most of it pays off nicely in the very good final forty minutes, which are surprisingly gripping. The acting here is, on average, much, much better than in Games of Love and Chance, without a bum actor in the group. The big discovery here is Hafsia Herzi. Her belly dancing is awesome, for sure, but she's outstanding throughout. Her career seems to have gone well afterward. I'll finally have to sit down and watch House of Pleasures (aka L'Apollonide) now.
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