The Blue Caftan
Mon 10 Jul 2023
- Arabic with English subtitles
- Duration: 122 mins.
| Mon 10 Jul
8pm |
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Halim (Saleh Bakri) has been married for a long time to Mina (Lubna Azabal), with whom he runs a traditional caftan store in the médina of Salé, in Morocco, where they create exquisitely finished hand-sewn garments. As Mina’s health begins to fade, they employ a young apprentice. The new arrival unknowingly disturbs the careful equilibrium of their lives, for theirs is a loving marriage designed to hide a secret. Thoughtful, sensual, and deeply moving, Maryam Touzani’s (Adam, 2019), drama traces the melancholy and loneliness of maintaining a secret, and the sudden joyous release to be found in living one’s life to the fullest. Brilliantly acted, it’s an overwhelmingly tender character study where each will help the other face their fears.
Director: Maryam Touzani
Cast: Lubna Azabal, Saleh Bakri, Ayoub Missioui
Cannes Film Festival, 2022
Toronto International Film Festival, 2022
BFI London Film Festival, 2022
Cork International Film Festival, 2022
International Film Festival Rotterdam, 2023
FIPRESCI Prize, Un Certain Regard, 2022 (Maryam Touzani)
‘Maryam Touzani’s gentle observation of her characters in a film of exquisite sensuality and sadness.’
David Rooney, The Hollywood Reporter
‘The Blue Caftan dares to imagine a world where there’s room for both appreciation of the old ways and room to evolve.’
Peter Debruge, Variety
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