She's the perfect daughter until she decides to be perfectly herself.
A few miles from Paris, on the other side of the northern ring road, stands a ghetto neighborhood with countless rows of dilapidated apartment buildings, their concrete crumbling and iron rusting. A multiracial community has long been rooted here, while most native French families have deserted the area. In tower 216 lives a "model" family of Algerian origin, the Bouamazzas. Our heroine, Aïcha, 25, the eldest daughter, is held up as an example by the whole community. But Aïcha can no longer bear the weight of the community: she wants to spread her wings, gain her independence, and finally cross the Rubicon.
Acting
Sofia Essaïdi's restrained fury simmers beneath every smile.
Direction
Benguigui shoots the banlieue with unflinching warmth, never poverty porn.
Director
Yamina Benguigui
Sofia Essaïdi
Aïcha Bouamazza
Rabia Mokeddem
Mme Bouamaza
Amidou
M. Bouamaza
Bunny Godillot
Mme Maillard
Biyouna
Biyouna
Shemss Audat
Nedjma
Priscilla Attal-Sfez
Lisa
Bernard Montiel
Bernard Montiel
Linda Bouhenni
Farida
Farida Khelfa
Mailka
Katia Tchenko
Bernadette
Rime Nahmani
Rim
Lakshantha Abenayake
Mehdi
Tassadit Mandi
Madame Ben Miloud
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Benguigui, herself of Algerian descent, made this for French television in 2009 — a rare mainstream platform for banlieue women's stories that wasn't about terrorism or riots.
The title 'Aïcha' mirrors the 1960s hit by Khaled — a song about impossible love, repurposed here as impossible freedom. The irony isn't subtle; it's earned.
FR
