Hideous Kinky (1999)

I came across the book via an entry in a book called "1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die", which I have come to trust as a great pointer to entertaining works. The point-of-view in the book is rigidly and relentlessly that of the youngest daughter. And the picture that is painted from Lucia's 5 year old perspectiove is done very simply and lightly, with no deviation into a more adult rendering of the events. There are no "aha" moments, no coming-of-age realizations...just a world-view of a 5 year old girl, where anything and everything is already fantastical and enchanting.Never seen the movie. But looking forward to it, if it can remain faithful to the author's intent, should be very interesting and unique in film.

The tagline for this movie (on the DVD box) "It's not about escape, it's about discovery" would be inspiring if it were true, but I'm not sure 25 year old "Julia" found her time in Morocco as a single mother with two young girls living precariously on occasional cheques from home particularly life-changing. It is the late 60s. "Julia" (played with suitable poise by Kate Winslett) has fled London to Morocco after her painter husband has taken up with someone else. Marrakech is a cheap place to live, but it's a struggle. Her kids Bea and Lucy befriend Bilal (Said Taghmaoui), an acrobat from the Medina who promptly beds Julia. Charming though he is, he turns out to be unreliable. Her efforts to become a follower of Sufi mysticism end in rejection. Eventually Julia and her girls board the fabled Marrakech express, but it is in retreat from the exotic, not in search of it.It seems that Esther Freud, the original author, wrote her more than slightly autobiographical first novel from the point of view of Lucy, the younger child (6 years old in the film) and produced a very interesting book. The film is much more matter of fact, though the locations and cinematography are gorgeous, and Julia's struggle to survive is more obtrusive. It's an interesting country all right but Julia does not belong there.Your correspondent happened recently to be in Morocco, and Marrakech, and was told about this film by some local friends. They liked it because despite the beggars, heat and dust, it portrayed Morocco as a friendly, welcoming place. And so it is, but that does not make it the place for hippy dreamers. Ms Freud's mum settled down in the Home Counties after this experience. Here, Bea, the older girl, wants nothing more than to be "normal', to have a satchel, wear a uniform and go to school like all the other girls, and to heck with exotic Morocco. Lucy, on the other hand, just soaks it all in, and hey, 20 years later writes a promising first novel. Well, maybe Julia's odyssey was not entirely in vain.This film did not do well at the box office, despite the presence of Kate Winslett, and I can think of a couple of reasons (apart from the meaningless title) why not. The story, such as it is, is pretty discouraging and the locations over-relied on. (There are also a few dreadful minor performances). But as a psychological travel film it succeeds quite well, even if not everything is possible in the Moroccan Postal Service, as one brave official claims.Esther Freud happens to be the daughter of the noted British painter Lucien Freud, and hence the great-granddaughter of the great Sigmund, father of psychoanalysis. I mention this only because Julia has a couple of dreams great-granddad would not have had any trouble with, but Lucy's dreams eg the disembodied hand are more intriguing. Perhaps if the director could have approached the story more from Lucy's viewpoint it might have had more impact.

Not your typical "chick flick", this Kate Winslet drama is at sometime a drama and other times a coming of age movie with Kate on the sidelines. Although she is the star of the movie and see on the box cover art of the movie and poster, she is not the main character of the story. The real stars of the movie are two very young actors Bella Bella Riza and Carrie Mullan. Both girls are very good actors and have wonderful screen chemistry. It is there story that fuels many interests. While Kate Winsley teases the audience from time to time with her body (nude) it is the innocence from Bella and Carrie that make the movie interesting and watchable.

"Hideous Kinky" is not a plot-driven movie but more of a meditation on time and place. And I can live with that. The photography is so rich with colors and beautiful locales, I want to visit Morrocco. The acting in splendid across the board with particular note to the two young girls who were handed quite a bit of duty with the roles. Where this movie failed me is in the character played by Kate Winslet. She behaves with such selfishness and stupidity--not once--but over and over again, that I really grew to dislike her. Sure...she may be a young, naive, adventurous, hippie in the early '70's, but a I refuse to believe she didn't realize what kind of danger she was putting her children in. "Hideous Kinky" is a good movie--not great. And it's good for one viewing, maybe two for the cinematography.