Divines (2016)

A street teenager from a dysfunctional family from a banlieue (HLMs) in Paris comes across a young dancer who turns her life upside down.

Director:

Houda Benyamina

Writers:

Houda Benyamina (adaptation), Houda Benyamina (dialogue)

Stars:

Oulaya Amamra, Déborah Lukumuena, Kevin Mischel

Nominated for 1 Golden Globe. Another 14 wins & 10 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Oulaya Amamra	...	Dounia
Déborah Lukumuena	...	Maimouna
Kevin Mischel	...	Djigui (as Kevin Mishel)
Jisca Kalvanda	...	Rebecca
Yasin Houicha	...	Samir
Majdouline Idrissi	...	Myriam, la mère
Bass Dhem	...	Monsieur Camara
Mounir Margoum	...	Cassandra
Farid Larbi	...	Reda
Maryama Soumare	...	Madame Camara (as Mariama Soumaré)
Wilfried Romoli	...	Rachid
Tania Dessources	...	Madame Labutte
Mounir Amamra	...	Gars cité
Samir Zbrouki	...	Gervais
Mohamed Ourdache	...	Agent de sécurité

Storyline

Dounia, a teenager living in the slums and her friend Maimouna start working for Rebecca, a successful drug dealer in order to escape their poverty. Her meeting with Djigui, a sexy dancer, makes things complicated, but leaving Rebecca is not easy..

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Plot Keywords:

doused with gasoline | gun in mouth | banlieue | dancer | f rated | 

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Genres:

Crime | Drama

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Details

Country:

France Qatar

Language:

French

Release Date:

18 November 2016 (USA)

Also Known As:

Divinas

Filming Locations:

Paris, France

Box Office

Budget:

€2,440,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Easy Tiger, France 2 Cinéma, France Télévisions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

105 min

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Oulaya Amamra is director Houda Benyamina's little sister.

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Connections

References Prisoners (2013)

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Soundtracks

Générique (Dounia & Djigui)
by Demusmaker
© 2016 Easy Tiger

User Reviews

Real emotion bottled and presented in a distilled form

This is one very affecting movie, a type of film that fills you with a sense of real people feeling real emotions --nothing is fake, all the characters and all their needs are as real and painful as it gets. And just as in life, nothing is resolved in a satisfying ending.

The lead actress is one very ambitious young lady, Oulaya Amamra, who will make her mark on cinematic history soon, but you might want to catch her in her early stage to see how she progresses quickly to Meryl Streep (or at least Jennifer Lawrence) status. Her character's name is Dounia, and she is a daughter of the town slut in a Roma (Gypsy) camp.

Her best friend, Maimounia, a black girl, daughter of a Muslim priest, is as lovable as they come. The two of them conspire to become rich. Even though they achieve the goal, it eludes them in a way that is completely unfair, yet realistic. There is no simple resolution, and therefore, the film is just like life: it is completely and utterly unfair.

Although the plot seems simple, it is extremely more complex and a summary of the action doesn't do justice to the story. Dounia has a love-hate relationship with a male dancer that takes too much away from the rest of the film, and the scenes of the dancer are way over long and unnecessary, but thankfully it is the relationship that she has with her best female friend that is the true heart of the film.

To say more would detract from one's enjoyment of the twists and turns that ensue during the course of the film. Rest assured, you will be glad you spent time in the company of the actresses and the female director of this very impressive film.