By José Alberto Hermosillo
AFI
FEST REVIEW: “Adam” is an inspiring drama about women’s resilience and determination
against stigmatization in Morocco.
For some women, becoming
a mother is an act of love. For others, it is a devastating, distressing, and
confusing time. Every so often, it brings dishonor, shame, and misfortune.
“Adam” recaps three generations of Moroccan women who go through a unique loveless experience in an oppressive society where religion controls every aspect of life – added to male dominance, women struggle for their fundamental rights to work, love, and survive in their country.
“Adam” is a catharsis for women who want to live free from old societal biases.
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| Nasrin Erradi is Semia in "Adam." Strand Releasing ©2019 |
Alone in the streets of Casablanca, a troubled young pregnant woman named Semia, admirably played by Nasrin Erradi (“Catch the Wind”), is looking for shelter. Prejudices and stigmatization prevent peasants and residents from helping an outside sinner who is expecting - without a husband.
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| Lubna Azabal as Abla in "Adam." Standard Releasing ©2019 |
Semia’s misfortune may come to an end when she stumbles into a modest
bakery owned by Abla, performed by the well-known actress Lubna Azabal (“Tel Aviv
on Fire,” “Sofia,” “Goodbye Morocco,” and the Oscar nominee “Incendiaries”). Azabal is a mature woman hiding that she can’t love anymore.
Abla lives upstairs with her eight-year-old daughter, Warda - a curious girl looking for affection and suddenly attaches to the intriguing pregnant stranger she just met.
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| Nasrin Erradi is Semia in "Adam." Strand Releasing ©2019 |
Semia wants
shelter until her son is born. Then, she will give him away and return
to her community, and after that, her family will take her back as if nothing had happened.
Abla can accommodate the troubled lady for only three days before neighbors gossip about what’s happening in that house. She has enough problems with her daughter and her business and can’t give up any allowances so easily.
The interaction between the three women is edgy - as no one can externalize what they hide in their interior. But their lives will change dramatically after making crucial decisions, and they will give up their pride, which will help them build a strong bond in the newly created womanhood.
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| Nasrin Erradi is Semia in "Adam." Strand Releasing ©2019 |
The complications
keep the audience wondering how those relations will turn out for those resilient
women who stoically have to confront their judgmental society and themselves.
The outstanding performances make the characters believable as they connect with their problems and environment, such as the house, business, food, and forbidden music.
When the actresses learned about the project, they wanted to read the script immediately and give flesh to those stoic Moroccan women.
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| Maryam Touzani, writer/director of “Adam.” Photo by José Alberto Hermosillo, Festival in LA ©2019 |
When director Maryam Touzani was a child at her parent’s house, she witnessed women becoming mothers. After that meaningful moment, a maternal instinct was born in every woman in her home, including her.
Becoming a mother inspired Maryam to make a movie about motherhood. To tell her story freely, Maryam wanted to be as realistic and truthful as possible. “Stories of women need to be told from a woman’s perspective. The point-of-view from a woman director can trigger a change in society,” Maryam Touzani expressed at a Q&A after the presentation of her film at the AFI Fest 2019 in Los Angeles.
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| Maryam Touzani, writer/director of “Adam.” Photo by José Alberto Hermosillo, Festival in LA ©2019 |
In recent years, Muslim women directors have bravely raised their voices through cinema. Many have followed their passion, finding their unique voices by
narrating their personal stories with defined styles and esthetics.
Co-produced by Morocco, France, and Belgium, “Adam” is the astonishing Moroccan revelation of 2019. It was selected to represent the North African country for Best International Feature Film at the 92nd Academy Awards.
In “Adam’s” embryonic universe, women disbelieve each other but must be brave and support each other to resist the oppression of their fundamentalist society in Morocco.
The three women carry enormous baggage, including anxiety, grief, and depression. They must find the precise moment to externalize those hidden desires and move on from their traumatic experiences before a baby is born.
This film’s pace reveals just enough to let the audience think about how the birth of Adam affects the lives of the struggling female figures.
Without falling into “feminist,” the film “Adam” is a catharsis that liberates women mentally, physically, and emotionally from an asphyxiating and claustrophobic environment. Motherhood brings them hope and a better understanding of the microcosm.
Eloquently and beautifully crafted, “Adam” makes us think – how lucky we are to breathe without restrictions because people can’t breathe freely in other parts of the world where women had to be resilient, stoic, and agents of change against oppression.
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| Maryam Touzani, writer/director of “Adam.” Film critic José Alberto Hermosillo, Festival in LA ©2019 |
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| Lubna Azabal plays Abla in Adam. Critic José Alberto Hermosillo, Festival in LA ©2019 |
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