Hideous Kinky (1998)

Hideous Kinky is the story of two sisters (seven and five years old) traveling with their hippie mother from London to Morocco. They encounter many adventures, new experiences, and ... See full summary »

Director:

Gillies MacKinnon

Writers:

Esther Freud (novel), Billy MacKinnon

Stars:

Kate Winslet, Saïd Taghmaoui, Bella Riza

1 win.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Kate Winslet	...	Julia
Saïd Taghmaoui	...	Bilal
Bella Riza	...	Bea
Carrie Mullan	...	Lucy
Pierre Clémenti	...	Santoni
Abigail Cruttenden	...	Charlotte
Ahmed Boulane	...	Ben Said
Sira Stampe	...	Eva
Amidou	...	Sufi Sheikh
Michelle Fairley	...	Patricia
Kevin McKidd	...	Henning
Peter Youngblood Hills	...	Hippy
Mohcine Barmouni	...	Aziz
Annouar Zrika	...	Hicham
Mohamed Cherkaoui	...	Hadaoui

Storyline

Hideous Kinky is the story of two sisters (seven and five years old) traveling with their hippie mother from London to Morocco. They encounter many adventures, new experiences, and interesting culture as they tag along on their mother's search for freedom and love. It is told through the eyes of the youngest girl, and we learn her observations on life, Mum, and determined sister, Bea.

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Plot Keywords:

sister | hippie | morocco | skinny dipping | 1970s | 

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Taglines:

A Journey to Love

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Genres:

Drama | Romance

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for some sexuality and language

Details

Country:

UK France

Language:

English French Arabic

Release Date:

26 April 1999 (USA)

Also Known As:

A marokkói kaland

Filming Locations:

Marrakech, Morocco

Box Office

Budget:

$12,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

$82,431 (USA) (16 April 1999)

Gross:

$1,262,786 (USA) (13 August 1999)

Company Credits

Production Co:

AMLF, Arts Council of England, British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

98 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby SR

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The title of the film and book comes from the only two words the two girls remember their mum's friend saying "Hideous" and "Kinky". Bea in particular uses the words in a game that the girls play which is similar to "tag" but if she shouts "Hideous Kinky" before her sister tags her she is free.

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Quotes

Bea: It's because I flooded the bathroom and the ceiling fell in and the cats ran off, that's when she started talking about Marocco and the sufi's. Mom says a sufi doesn't ask who a sufi is... so what the hell is a sufi anyway?

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Connections

Featured in Reel Bad Arabs: How Hollywood Vilifies a People (2006)

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Soundtracks

"Alone Again Or"
Written by Bryan MacLean
Performed by Love

User Reviews

A movie that rewards you to the degree of your own insights

This film has all the qualities of an exquisite poem: the rhythm of feeling, the power of understated experience, the slender and subtle plot. Some elements of this story--the existential search for identity, the lack of obvious momentum, the subjective encounter with alternative civilisations etc.--are very much out of fashion at the moment, as is evident from several reviews. Poetry may be out of fashion for similar reasons, but probably not forever. I admire this film as a gesture of art, one that enriches the viewer without spelling out a heavy-handed individualistic message. I hope we will see more movies like this one.