Director

Hinde Boujemaa

Tunisia, France, Belgium | 2019 | 90 min | Arabic, French with subtitles in English

• Producer Imed Marzouk
• Production Company Propaganda Productions
• Screenplay Hinde Boujemaa
• Cinematography Martin Rit
• Editing
• Sound
• Cast Hind Sabri, Lotfi Abdelli, Hakim Massoudi
• Contacts

  Wild Bunch

  ecastro@wildbunch.eu

About the Film

In Hinde Boujemaa’s narrative feature debut, a woman is torn between two imperfect men. At the center of this masterful film, which Boujemaa also wrote, is Noura, played perfectly by Tunisian superstar Hend Sabry. Noura works long hours at a laundromat to support her three kids, while her husband Sofiane is in jail. Bringing a shred of light into this exhausting existence is her lover Lassaad. However, Noura has to navigate the hazards of adultery in Tunisia—punishable by five years in jail. Just as her divorce is about to come through, Noura’s husband is unexpectedly released from jail, throwing all her well-laid plans to the wind.

Noura’s Dream is a story as much about the perils of being a woman in today’s world, as it is about the danger of making difficult personal choices. Boujemaa weaves in and out of Noura’s grueling existence, striking a balance between the two men in her life with a commanding touch usually showcased by master—i.e., more seasoned—filmmakers. And yet, it comes as no surprise to those who have watched her 2012 documentary It Was Better Tomorrow, which explores, with clarity and style, the struggles of a single mother following the Tunisian Revolution. Boujemaa is surely a filmmaker to watch.

E. Nina Rothe