Sous les pieds des femmes (1997)
Directed by Rachida Krim

Film Review

Sous les pieds des femmes deserves to be a compelling and insightful meditation on how ordinary people coped with the Algerian War of the late 1950s.  The concept is sound, the script is thoughtfully written and the performances are generally convincing.  It even has Italian diva Claudia Cardinale in the leading role, so what more could you ask for? Unfortunately, whilst the film has a great deal going for it, it is a hard film to engage with at more than a superficial level. At times, it feels like a drawn-out history lesson, lacking poetry, drama and real human interest.  Mahmoud Zemmouri's Les Folles années du twist (1986) deals with the same subject matter from a more humorous angle, but is somewhat more involving.

The main deficiency seems to be that the characters are somewhat lacking in depth and individuality. Claudia Cardinale aside, it is hard to tell the female characters apart - they are just faceless representatives of a cruelly oppressed sex, The direction also lacks the inspired touch, and several sequences are just too cold and mechanical to engage the spectator's interest. In spite of its many shortcomings, Sous les pieds des femmes does offer some insight into life in Algeria in the years leading up to its independence in 1962, and some of what the film shows us is genuinely shocking. This was the first feature from director Rachida Krim, and to date her only film for the cinema, although she has since made a number of films for television.

Film Synopsis

Aya and Moncef are an Algerian couple who have made France their home.  In 1996, Aya is reunited with her former lover, whom she has not seen for 35 years.  Before leaving Algeria during its turbulent period in the late 1950s, Aya and her lover were active supporters of the terrorist liberation group, the FLN.   The return of her lover after so long a time forces Aya to think back on those difficult times...