Aïcha Review
Aya (Fatma Sfar), a young woman in Tozeur, works in a hotel for the upper class—putting up with their cold behaviours and wasteful nature. Just as her parents are gearing up to arrange her marriage, her job announces a mass layoff, courtesy of the boss she is having an affair with. Already down on her luck, things take an even worse turn when their transportation van crashes off of a cliff. Despite Aya’s best attempts to save the others, she winds up being the only survivor of the horrific incident. Nobody realizes she is lost in the desert, so she is presumed dead in the van’s explosion. Aya decides to remain a ghost, allowing her parents to collect a settlement check worth enough to pay off her debts, and giving herself a second chance of living a free, happy life.
After heading to Tunis, Aya assumes the identity of Amira and enters the party scene courtesy of her new roommate Lobna (Yasmine Dimassi). Through the perspective of director and writer Mehdi M. Barasoui, we watch as she tumbles down an even darker path, engaging with older wealthy criminals who prove they are capable of having a man murdered for only talking to her in the club. This moment sparks the rest of the film in motion. The film operates at its strongest when it captures all the haunting aspects of Aya’s life. Grief is the throughline, whether it’s for those she couldn’t save in the car crash, the man who was murdered, or even her past life—as she watches her funeral in a powerful moment. One of the best scenes from Barasoui is when Aya returns to the club, only to be pressured into taking drugs and still not being able to escape the late clubgoer she couldn’t protect.
It also addresses Aya’s guilt, given she was pushed to lie about the case—both by the infamous mobsters and those in the police office. However, the web of plot points manages to wrap themselves up by the end, even though they haven’t fully been explored. Aya’s parents return in a heartbreaking moment, but they disappear just as quickly again. She manages to find justice for the man who was murdered, but it remains slightly confusing as to whether it was the police’s fault or the mobster group’s.
Aya’s journey feels like a rollercoaster: partially hard to believe until discovering it’s inspired by a true story. With everything her character encounters and the pain she tolerates, you can’t help but hope she’s able to finally find peace after she agrees to adopt her final identity: taking the name of a deceased woman named Aïcha and vanishing once again.
★★★1/2
Aïcha played as part of the 2024 BFI London Film Festival earlier this month / Fatma Sfar, Yasmine Dimassi, Nidhal Saadi / Dir: Mehdi M. Barasoui
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