Cinema
ياقوت
Jamal Belmajdoub · 2000
Synopsis
Moulay Driss, a cultured and quick-witted man, silently loves his cousin Yacout; hunchbacked and blind in one eye, he forbids himself to confess his love to her for fear of displeasing her. His friend Ali, for his part, is handsome and irresistible, but uneducated. The two men make a pact: Moulay Driss will help Ali win Yacout and begins writing fiery letters for him, which he sometimes recites himself, hidden behind a tree. Yacout falls in love with Ali, that is, with the words of Moulay Driss.
Context
Shot in Fez and Marrakech from June 1999, according to Africultures, the film revisits two French classics, Cyrano de Bergerac by Edmond Rostand and Notre-Dame de Paris by Victor Hugo, from which it borrows the letters attributed to a rival and the hunchbacked hero. The filmmaker wrote the screenplay; Alain Levent was responsible for the cinematography and Rachid Ben Allal for the editing, for Bravo Production, with Sahara Productions according to Africultures. Mohamed Miftah plays Moulay Driss, Fatema Khaïr plays Yacout and Khalid Benchagra plays Ali.
Who it is for
A colour feature film, shot on 35 mm, running 95 to 97 minutes depending on the sources; no video copy is reported.
Prizes and reception
Feature debut of a former critic and screenwriter, who adapts two classics of French literature in Morocco.
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