Cinema
A Love in Casablanca
حب في الدار البيضاء
Abdelkader Lagtaâ · 1991
Synopsis
Saloua, an eighteen-year-old schoolgirl, finds herself alone after her mother's suicide and her sister's running away, caught between a father whose severity hurts her and a stepmother who mocks her. She clings to Jalil, a fifty-year-old man separated from his wife and struggling at work, and becomes his mistress; but the frustrations of this unstable man gradually wear her out. She then meets Najib, a young man passionate about photography, and falls in love with him.
Context
The filmmaker wrote the screenplay and edited the film; Abdelkrim Derkaoui was the cinematographer and the company Cinéstar produced it, the music being the work, according to Friends of Morocco, of the singer Abdelouhab Doukkali. Mouna Fettou, discovered through this role, stars opposite Ahmed Naji and Mohamed Zouhir, with Mustapha Zaari and Rachid El Ouali, who later thanked the director for launching his career. Released in Morocco the following year, the film was a great success there and was selected at numerous festivals.
Who it is for
A feature film in Moroccan Arabic and French, 90 to 100 minutes depending on the sources; no video copy is reported.
Prizes and reception
Best actress prize for Mouna Fettou at the third National Film Festival, in Meknes, in 1991, according to Aujourd'hui le Maroc.