Arab Blues

Manele Labidi has been busy putting the final touches on her upcoming second feature film, ‘Queen Mom’ lately, but I recently had the chance to catch her debut, ‘Arab Blues.’ I enjoyed its light tone and how the nostalgic Italian songs created that breezy Mediterranean vibe.

In her 2019 film ‘Arab Blues’ (Un divan à Tunis), French-Tunisian Director Manele Labidi takes a comedic look at the Tunisian people’s state of mind post-Arab Spring. Co-written by Maud Ameline, the story follows a Tunis-born psychoanalyst who has lived in Paris since childhood and returns to her homeland after the 2011 Tunisian revolution.

Labidi mentioned in interviews that the idea for the story came from various sources. One was her personal experience: when she told her mother she was going to psychotherapy, her mother was offended that she shared family secrets with a stranger. This incident got Labidi thinking. The second influence was societal. She observed that after the decades of dictatorship ended in 2011, Tunisian people had an unstoppable urge to express themselves freely, and she felt psychoanalytic practices could have helped with, had they been more common in Tunisia. Labidi also states she drew inspiration from classic Italian comedies of the 60s and 70s, like ‘Le Pigeon,’ ‘Marriage,’ ‘Italian Style,’ and ‘Ugly, Dirty and Bad,’ which tackled social and political subjects through humor and satire.

Regarding the construction of scenes, I found them simple yet effective. While some reviewers criticized Labidi for portraying characters as a bit cartoony, I can see where they’re coming from, especially with the set of eccentric patients. However, as long as it serves a purpose in the general narrative, I don’t mind. It certainly worked for me in this story.

While there were probably some cultural references that flew over my head, the film felt quite familiar overall. Sometimes I can’t help but think that people in third-world countries live in one big country. We all suffer similar issues—hopelessness due to corruption, isolation from the rest of the world, and the pressure to be useful to society. But amidst these challenges, there’s a resilience and humor we demonstrate that never fails to mesmerize me.