The Silences of the Palace

Moufida Tlatli's 1994 Tunisian film follows a young woman who returns, on a prince's death, to the palace where she was born. Her mother was a servant there and she grew up in the palace; the return lets her understand now what she did not as a child. The film sets the founding of post-colonial Tunisia beside the condition of the women in the palace. That nothing changed in the servants' lives while independence was won is the narrative's quiet criticism; the silence of the title covers both being silenced and what goes unsaid. As the first feature by a Tunisian woman director it is regarded as a turning point in Arab cinema. Hend Sabry appeared on screen with it at a very young age. The narrative moves continually between past and present. Who it's for: those who like Arab cinema and historical drama from a woman's point of view. Who it's not for: viewers troubled by sexual abuse conveyed by implication; the film does not show it openly but it is central to the story.