Halfaouine: Boy of the Terraces

This 1990 debut film by Ferid Boughedir--like FranHois Truffaut, a critic-turned-filmmaker--is a fairly routine coming-of-age story given distinction by its exotic setting--the titular neighborhood in Tunis--and evocative portrayal of the local culture. Noura (played by Selim Boughedir, the director's nephew) is a 13-year-old whose fascination with the female form is painfully apparent to everyone but his mother whenever she takes the boy with her to the women's Turkish bath. Somehow, his obsession also escapes the notice of his surly father, although it should be obvious from his association with older neighborhood boys, as well as the local eccentric, a lusty, alcoholic, politically radical shoemaker and singer. Noura's story, while interesting enough, is unfortunately hobbled by Selim's lack of expressiveness, and by the fractured character of the script, which tries to comment on religious and political oppression and the subservience of women (juxtaposing the circumcision of Noura's younger brother with the boy's very different transformation to manhood is a particularly heavy-handed touch). Nonetheless, Halfaouine does take the viewer to a place not often visited in contemporary film, and it's beautifully photographed. Presented in an excellent transfer here, the DVD also includes Boughedir's 1987 documentary Camera Arabe, an interpretive history of Arab cinema with a progressive outlook that now seems, in light of the recent rise of Islamic fundamentalism, unduly hopeful. A strong optional purchase. (F. Swietek)