Rengaine

The winner of the FIPRESCI award at the Quinzaine des Réalisateurs in Cannes tackles the hypocrisy surrounding a forbidden love in Paris. French-Algerian Sabrina wants to get married to a black would-be actor, to the horror of her forty brothers. The two lovers try to build up a life together in these hostile surroundings. The brother who is most fiercely critical of the wedding has himself struck up a relationship with a Jewish woman.
This energetic and topical variant on Romeo and Juliet, with Parisian Africans and Algerians as the Montagues and Capulets, charts new waters by looking at the racial gap between the two immigrant communities from different angles.
For his feature debut, Rachid Djaïdani (boxing champion, novelist, actor, filmmaker) used extreme close-ups, rapid editing and a moving camera. His no-budget film, on which he worked for nine years, also has lighter moments, such as the scenes in which a few dance steps are unexpectedly made.