A Voice of the French Suburbs: “Wesh wesh, qu’est-ce qui se passe?” and “Bled Number One” by Rabah Ameur-Zaïmeche
Abstract
The author analyzes a film diptych by the French-Algerian director Rabah Ameur-Zaïmeche: Wesh wesh, qu’est-ce qui se passe? (2001) and Bled Number One (2006). The diptych explores the social, economic, and legal situation of thousands of North African immigrants and their descendants living in the French banlieues. Films devoted to these issues have been created in France for decades and have become an object of interest for many Western scholars, but in Poland they still have not received sufficient attention. In this article, the author analyzes the components of the world depicted in both films, primarily by relating them to the real world. She considers the elements of the diegesis as reflecting the real (social, economic etc.) phenomena. She also focuses on the director’s individual, paradocumentary style and formal solutions, showing how they emphasize the meaning of both films.
Keywords:
migrant cinema, French suburbs, banlieues, immigrants from the Maghreb, beur cinemaReferences
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Authors
Ewa Linekewa.linek@gmail.com
University of Lodz Poland
https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0253-0270
She holds MA degrees in Philosophy and Cultural Studies as well as a PhD in Linguistics, Literary and Cultural studies. She is an Assistant Professor at the Department of Middle East and North Africa at the University of Lodz. Her scientific interests focus on Middle Eastern and Maghrebian cinematographies read in their cultural, social, political and religious context. She is the author of articles on the cinema and culture of the Maghreb. They were published, among others, in The Maghreb Review and Bliski Wschód. Społeczeństwa – Polityka – Tradycje.
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