‘The Blue Caftan’ Review: A Closeted Tailor Confronts His Feelings in This Understated Moroccan Drama
variety.comPeter Debruge Chief Film CriticIt’s no secret that Morocco is one of the most homophobic places on earth, punishing certain acts with prison sentences of up to three years.
The secret, as far as Maryam Touzani’s “The Blue Caftan” is concerned, is that its main character is homosexual. The man, Halim (Salem Bakri), is devoted to both his religion and his wife, Mina (“Incendies” star Lubna Azabal).
Together they own an old-fashioned garment shop in the town’s medina, where such stories almost certainly exist. Still, it takes equal measures of audacity and sensitivity to portray them on screen, especially from a woman’s point of view.Halim works as a maalem, or master tailor, struggling to keep the trade alive.
These days, machines accomplish the work that artisans like Halim once did by hand, and apprentices are hard to find. Much of the film is dedicated to this disappearing craft: Touzani (“Adam”) admires the care with which Halim sews the embroidery to the hem of a caftan, featuring shots of characters preparing the thread, testing the fabrics and so on.
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