After its massive success upon its release two weeks ago in UAE, feature film A Tale of Love and Desire, by Leyla Bouzid, will continue screening at Cinema Akil, until June 2nd, 2022. This comes as part of the film’s tour across the Arab world that started last February with its release in several Moroccan cities.
On both the Arab and international stages, A Tale of Love and Desire has received significant critical acclaim, with Amber Wilkinson writing in the Eye For Film website saying, "A Tale of Love and Desire is a film that celebrates the joy and fears associated with youthful lust, while exploring the internal cultural conflict, without making it feel tacky or like a diatribe."
While the film critic Enas Haqqi praised the film in an article on Raseef22, saying, "Leyla Bouzid handles her picture with compassion and grace, particularly in the scenes where the hero and heroine interact."
In addition, via Harvard Crimson, writer Sofia Andrade said, “The film is aesthetically and emotionally spectacular.” While Lee Marshal at Screen Daily described it as, “warm, emotional, and lovely in every imaginable way, leaving the audience delighted and wanting more” Moreover, Latita Ratan wrote for the News in 24 website saying that, “Leyla Bouzid's masterwork, full of beauty and poetry and represented by talented actors.” And according to Mohsen Amin in Al-Ain newspaper, who described the film as, "a Tunisian film that deals with the question of identity and internal conflict."
‘A Tale of Love and Desire,’ landed its world premiere at Cannes’ International Critics' Week. Moreover, it won the Best Actor award and the Diamond Valois award at Angoulême Francophone Film Festival. Besides, it received the Jury Prize for Best First and Second Film at the Medfilm Film Festival in Rome. The film also was featured in the official competition of Carthage Film Festival (JCC) in Tunisia and was screened at Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF).
Prior to this, it was screened at several prestigious festivals including, Zurich Film Festival, BFI London Film Festival, Busan International Film Festival, Sydney Film Festival, Thessaloniki International Film Festival, CINEMANIA Film Festival, and Miami International Film Festival (GEMS).
The film follows the story of Ahmed, an 18-year-old French teenager of Algerian origin who meets Farah, a young Tunisian girl, and falls head over heels in love with her. While discovering a collection of sensual and erotic Arab literature, Ahmed tries to resist his desire towards Farah.
Written and directed by Leyla Bouzid, A Tale of Love and Desire stars Sami Outalbali, Zbeida Belhajamor, Samir Elhakim, Diong-Kéba Tacu, and Aurélia Petit, and is produced by Blue Monday Productions and Pyramide International. MAD Solutions handles the film’s distribution across the Arab world, while Pyramide International handles the film’s worldwide distribution.
Born and raised in Tunisia, director Leyla Bouzid went to Paris in 2003 to study French literature at the Sorbonne, where she joined La Fémis’ Directing department. After working on several award-winning short films, Leyla directed her debut feature, As I Open my Eyes (a.k.a. a Peine J'ouvre les Yeux), which was screened at the 72nd Venice International Film Festival, before winning more than forty international awards and achieving success during its simultaneous theatrical release in France and Tunisia. A Tale of Love and Desire is her second feature film. It world premiered at the Cannes Film Festival and was selected at prestigious film festivals.
