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ClareR (6037 KP) rated The Country of Others in Books

Sep 19, 2021

The Country of Others

Leila Slimani | 2021 | Fiction & Poetry, History & Politics

9.0

(1 Ratings)

Book Rating

This is a fascinating look at Leïla Slimani’s own family history.

Mathilde falls in love with, and marries, Amine Belhaj, a Moroccan stationed in Alsace. After the war, she sails to Morocco to live with Amine on his family farm. Life is so different to that in France, and Mathilde struggles to adapt. The French there shun her because of her husband, and Moroccans are suspicious of her because she’s French.

It’s a time of great upheaval in the 1950’s, as the Moroccans fight for independence from France, and life becomes increasingly dangerous for the Belhaj’s.

It’s a challenging life for Mathilde: she has to work hard, and Amine has a very fixed idea of a wife’s role. When she doesn’t stick to his rules, voices her opinions or disagrees, Amine beats her - he’s a violent man, scarred by the things that he saw and experienced in the war.

Mathilde does manage to insist that their daughter, Aicha, goes to a good French speaking school, and Aicha proves to be a good, diligent student - but the other girls at school are poisoned by their parents views: they’re very unkind and bully her.

There is a real feel for the heat and dust of Morocco. The contrasting cultures and religions of Christianity and Islam are shown, as well as the roles of women and how they are restricted in the light of their religions and it’s traditions. It looks at what it is to be a foreigner in a strange land; belonging, both in a country and a family; and the Moroccan struggle for independence from France.

This is going to be a trilogy, and I’m already fully invested in it - I can’t wait for the next book. Sam Taylor’s translation is perfect, and I hope that they’ll be translating the subsequent books as well.

Many thanks to The Pigeonhole for helping me (yet again!) with my NetGalley reading, and to Faber for my ebook copy through NetGalley.

Kudos

Andy K (10823 KP) rated A Vigilante (2018) in Movies

Aug 11, 2019

A Vigilante (2018)

2018 | Crime, Drama, Mystery

6.8

(5 Ratings)

Movie Rating

and the trucks won't stop coming...

Olivia Wilde is the main reason to watch this female empowerment/revenge film as her performance is visceral, raw, emotional and intense for sure.

Sadie is a young woman tormented by her family's history. She tried to cope with her uncontrollable emotions by attending a support group and by studying self defense. She has decided her course in life has become to defend the innocent women and children of domestic violence by being an Equalizer?Death Wish type "vigilante" on the batterers.

When her own past comes back to haunt her, she has to use all her newly acquired skills to escape and possible prevail.

While I don't obviously condone taking the law into your own hands, the audience is definitely with her as she exacts her raw justice on the domestic assailants.

I was disappointed in the 2nd half of the film which falls into a formula eroding the interesting character study which had been developing up to that point. Once the 3rd acts starts, it turns into a different film. I wish it would've stayed the plot line which showed her tortured soul more and showed her as the flawed heroine she is.