SYNOPSIS: Set against the sensual, exotic backdrop of modern Tunisia, renowned Arab critic-turned-filmmaker Ferid Boughedir's Halfaouine: Boy of the Terraces is a bittersweet portrait of a boy's sexual awakening.

Noura is an inquisitive 13-year-old whose eyes are opened to his own sexual desires when he visits the local Turkish bathhouses with his mother.  Gazing upon the spectacular array of unclothed women and girls, Noura begins to experience his first pangs of longing.  But just as Noura is awakened to the pleasures of the fair sex, he risks being wrestled from their tender, affectionate companionship and thrust into the callous and rigid company of men.

A sensitive, comical look at the difficulty of growing up under the puritanical codes of Islam, Boughedir's film is also a rich, vibrant portrait of the Arab neighborhood of Halfaouine, with its array of colorful and eccentric citizenry from whom Noura learns the complicated, often hypocritical ways of adulthood.

EDITORIAL REVIEW:  Halfaouine: Boy of the Terraces is the story of Noura, living in the Halfaouine neighborhood of Tunisia (a small country located in the northern most part of Africa), and his ambition of seeing as many naked women as he can before he is no longer allowed to go to the bath houses with his mother!  After each visit, Noura regales his friends with details of what he saw and who he saw in the communal baths.  Living in a strict Islamic state, though, his escapades are soon uncovered and he finds himself getting in trouble with the police, his father and their new servant!  Halfaouine is a rare and sensual look inside an often misunderstood country and people.  Boys will be boys, regardless of race, religion or geographical location!

Selim Boughedir plays Noura, and is the nephew of the director,  Ferid Boughedir.  This remastered version has been enhanced for 16x9 TVs (widescreen).  Pick it up before it's gone forever!  There are many funny moments throughout the movie, but we're not sure if it was intended that way...the acting in some spots by a few of the local hooligans and eccentrics leaves you chuckling at how bad it is!  And check out the live circumcision scene (Muslim boys are circumcised much later than Christian boys)...ouch!  No trick photography here.

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* This DVD will play WORLDWIDE.  This is not a DVD-R.

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STARRING: Selim Boughedir, Mustapha Adouani, Rabia Ben Abdallah, Mohammed Driss, Hélène Catzaras.
AVAILABILITY: In stock! Ships within one business day.
LENGTH: 98 minutes.
LANGUAGE: Arabic, with OPTIONAL ENGLISH SUBTITLES.
SPECIAL FEATURES: 1.85:1 (16:9 Widescreen); 2.0 Stereo; 1 disc; "Camera Arabe" a feature length documentary on the history of Arab cinema; Photo gallery; Chapter selection; Uncut.
VIEWER DISCRETION: Frequent nudity, sexual innuendo, coarse language, violence.
PICTURE QUALITY: Excellent picture quality. (what's this mean?)
COUNTRY OF ORIGIN: France / Tunisia (1990).
ALSO KNOWN AS: Halfaouine - l'enfant des terrasses (France) / Halfaouine: Child of the Terraces.
DATE ADDED TO OUR LIBRARY:  July 27, 2007.
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