The Mother of All Lies review – pursuing the truth of Morocco’s brutal dictatorship years

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Asmae El Moudir employs a delicate mix of handmade replicas and oral testimony to brilliantly evoke personal and collective trauma Between those who refuse to remember and those who struggle to forget, a tumultuous clash of minds occupies the centre of Asmae El Moudir’s inventive documentary, a prize-winner at last year’s Cannes film festival. Through a constellation of clay figurines and dollhouse-style miniature sets, most of which were constructed by El Moudir’s father, the director recreates her oppressive childhood in the Sebata district of Casablanca. Under the watchful eyes of her domineering grandmother Zahra, all personal photos are banished from the house, save for a picture of King Hassan II. The delicate mix of handmade replicas and oral testimony brilliantly evokes the personal and collective trauma that stem from Morocco’s “Years of Lead” – a period of state brutality under Hassan II’s dictatorial rule. Lingering on the nimble fingers of El Moudir’s father as he puts t
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Makeup review secret life of a drag-artist banker underpins tender friendship tale

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The story of an unlikely friendship between a city type and a haughty Frenchman has moments of genuine pathos but doesn’t quite feel real

This low-key, low-budget portrait of an odd-couple friendship takes a while to get going, and never fully hits its stride – though it has its moments. Director Hugo André plays chef turned food blogger Sacha, a fastidious Frenchman living in London who rents a room in a house. His new landlord and flatmate is city banker Dan (Will Masheter), who seems to slot neatly into the stereotype of macho finance bro. But Dan turns out to have a secret life, dressing up in glittery glam frocks and feather boas, transforming into alter ego Danielle.

A friendship of sorts develops between the two men, throwing up a couple of nice scenes. When Dan cooks soup, picky gourmand Sacha looks appalled in the way that only a Frenchman can at the claggy dollop of peanut butter slopped into his bowl. There’s a real sweetness, too, in Masheter’s performance as Dan begins to live more openly, tiptoeing into the world of cabaret – and, if nothing else, watching his self-expression blossom is a reminder of how sinister the anti-drag laws are that are currently sweeping the US.

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