Mektoub, My Love: Canto Uno

France, 1994. Amin, a young screenwriter from Paris, returns to his hometown for the summer vacation. With cousin Tony, and good friend Ophélie, Amin meanders between his parents’ Tunisian restaurant, local bars, and golden beaches teeming with good-looking girls. A lot of emotions and passions surface, but while women fall under Tony’s spell, introverted Amin is left behind. Abdellatif Kechiche’s (Blue is the Warmest Color) new film is probably his most daring, with free-flowing dialogues and wonderfully naturalistic performances by the young, inexperienced actors. Mektoub’s plotline is rather thin, and it is hard to pinpoint its power source—still, it is an eye-riveting work you simply cannot disregard.