Search - Inch'Allah Dimanche on DVD

The finesse with which the Zouida is built is just beautiful

Jenny J.J.I. | That Lives in Carolinas | 05/04/2006

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Humans look for a peaceful dwelling on the earth. Homesickness is a characteristic of human existence. We belong to where we feel at home.

I must admit that there seems to be flaws in story and some problems with character development. However this originates from the nature of narrative style the director Yamina Benguigui prefers. You must have heard the literary writing style called "flow or stream of consciousness" to which James Joyce's "Ulysses" shown as an example. In the same manner, the film tells the story as a "flow of memories", most probably from a child's point of view. Reading an interview with Yamina Benguigui, I learn that the texture of the work is personal.

Childhood memories are sometimes clear and sometimes obscure. And a child's perception of the events is mainly based on images. So this explains the power and emotional impact of some scenes in the film: for ex. Zouida's breaking the window with bare hand. Or think of the old French couple's garden. They compete for the best garden award. On the other hand, the Algerian family's garden is chaotic. And the garden is not their own yet, the children can not play there as they wish. Around the symbolism of garden, we get a from-inside look at the emigrant psychology in its naive form through a child's eye.

The finesse with which the Zouida is built is just beautiful - she just shines. The movie is not stereotypical at all. The film also doesn't fall into the trap of making the ending happy and conclusive - at the end you're just left with a smile on your face and feeling like Zouida is actually somewhere out there living her life. The supporting actors are perfect, from the bus driver to the neighbors to the grocery store clerk. The pace of the movie is that of a lullaby - a still, sad, lullaby. This movie deserves all the praise.
"

Moving film

Isabella U. | Palo Alto, CA | 10/23/2005

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Inch'Allah Dimanche brings to life the experiences of an Algerian woman reunited with her husband in France. Although it is not fully representative in all aspects of an immigrant's life, the movie highlights certain problems of female immigrants. For instance, her feeling of isolation is well portrayed through her relationship with her neighbors and her family. This isolation, due to her role in the family, a language barrier and her homesickness, is one of the main themes in the film. Domestic violence is also portrayed in the relationship she has with her husband.
Not all Algerians live in the suburbs (which are a mixture of immigrants and working class French). The husband seemed to have a stable job and he had been living in France for the past 10 years. There is a possibility he created a financial base so that he could provide for his family.
I would say this is a must see. I would also like to recommend Esquive if anyone would like a good representation of adolescence in the suburbs."

God willing . . .

Ronald Scheer | Los Angeles | 09/18/2006

(4 out of 5 stars)

"According to many accounts, this film portrays what is the reality of married life for many Muslim women - treated as something between a servant and a prisoner in their own home. Set in the 1970s, this film follows the experience of an Algerian woman, who with her three young children and mother-in-law joins her husband, a guest worker in France. Forced to remain at home rather than be exposed to the corrupting influences of the world outside, she is brow-beaten by her mother-in-law and physically beaten for perceived lapses from the rigid expectations of her husband. Nonetheless, at risk to life and limb, she seizes brief opportunities to escape from home with her children in search of another Algerian family she has heard of in the neighborhood.

Actress Fejira Deliba is wonderful in the role of the wife, Zouina. Beleaguered at home, she is undefeated and reaches out to the alien culture around her, listening to game shows and talk shows on the radio, and making friends with two French women, one of them a neighbor who brings her contraband in the form of cosmetics. A third woman, who lives next door, is obsessed with her showcase backyard garden and together with her husband introduces a farcical element in an otherwise disturbing portrayal of domestic abuse. And as other reviewers have noted, the fantasy ending does nothing to dismiss the dismay and anguish in Zouina's growing realization of her actual situation."