Laïla Marrakchi
Laila Marrakchi (born 1975 in Casablanca) is a Moroccan film maker most famous for the controversial film '' Marock''. The film was screened in the Un Certain Regard section at the 2005 Cannes Film Festival.
She is married to film director Alexan ...
. The film was 2006's most successful film in Morocco, taking more than 3 million
dirham
The dirham, dirhem or dirhm ( ar, درهم) is a silver unit of currency historically and currently used by several Arab and Arab influenced states. The term has also been used as a related unit of mass.
Unit of mass
The dirham was a un ...
s at the Moroccan
box-office
A box office or ticket office is a place where tickets are sold to the public for admission to an event. Patrons may perform the transaction at a countertop, through a hole in a wall or window, or at a wicket. By extension, the term is fre ...
, according to TelQuel. It was very controversial as it deals with a Muslim-Jewish romantic relationship between two young people in Casablanca, Morocco, Rita and Youri.
The film was shown in Moroccan cinemas without being edited or censored. The title Marock is a play on words based on the French name for Morocco, ''Maroc'', and ''rock'' as in ''rock 'n' roll''. It was screened in the
Un Certain Regard
(, meaning 'a certain glance') is a section of the Cannes Film Festival's official selection. It is run at the Debussy, parallel to the competition for the . This section was introduced in 1978 by Gilles Jacob.
The section presents 20 films ...
section at the
2005 Cannes Film Festival
The 58th Cannes Film Festival started on 11 May and ran until 22 May 2005. Twenty movies from 13 countries were selected to compete. The awards were announced on 21 May. The Palme d'Or went to the Belgian film '' L'Enfant'' by Dardenne brothers.
...
.
Cast
*
Morjana Alaoui
Morjana Alaoui ( ar, مرجانة العلوي; born November 30, 1982) is a Moroccan- French actress. She is best known for her starring roles in director Laila Marrakchi's '' Marock'' and ''Rock the Casbah,'' films which dealt with sexual taboo ...
– Rita Belghiti
*
Matthieu Boujenah
Matthieu Boujenah (born 23 June 1976 in Bagneux, Hauts-de-Seine, Paris) is a French comedian and actor. He is the nephew of Michel Boujenah and Paul Boujenah. His sister is actress Lucie Boujenah
Lucie Boujenah, (born 31 July 1987 in Pari ...
– Youri Benchekri
*
Razika Simozrag
Razika was a Norwegian alternative indie pop band from Møhlenpris, Bergen with various indie rock, punk, ska and reggae influences. While their early work featured some tracks in English, they primarily composed songs in their native No ...
Assaad Bouab
Assaad Bouab ( ar, أسعد بواب, born July 31, 1980) is a French-Moroccan actor whose first co-starring role was in ''Whatever Lola Wants'', directed by Nabil Ayouch and co-starring Laura Ramsey as Lola. The film premiered on 11 December 2 ...
– Mao
*
Rachid Benhaissan
Rashid or Rachid ( ar, راشد ) and Rasheed ( ar, رشيد ), which means "rightly guided", may refer to:
*Rashid (name), also Rachid and Rasheed, people with the given name or surname
*Rached, a given name and surname
*Rashad, a surname
Plac ...
– Driss
*
Khalid Maadour
Khalid (variants include Khaled and Kalid; Arabic: خالد) is a popular Arabic male given name meaning "eternal, everlasting, immortal", and it also appears as a surname.Michael Souda – Mehdi
Critical reception
The film received 3 stars out of 4 from the critic Alain Spira in ''
Paris Match
''Paris Match'' () is a French-language weekly news magazine. It covers major national and international news along with celebrity lifestyle features.
History and profile
A sports news magazine, ''Match l'intran'' (a play on '' L'Intransigean ...
'': "Marrakchi depicts, in an original way, the young jet set of her country. ..Hypocritical religion, arranged marriages, the Judeo-Arab rivalry, nothing is spared. But ''Marock'' is also a great cry of love for her country with its generous spirit and matchless style for living."Paris Match, No. 2961, 16–22 February 2006