Much Loved (2015)

Plenty to Like, Plenty to Dislike

Good story, Not enough for a whole film

By the time the dramatic fireworks start popping off, each one feels earned.

Very good movie overall, highly recommended. Most of the negative reviews don't have any merit and are all pollitically based. Give this movie a chance at least, and it might give you a different perspective.

I appreciate how un-judgmental Ayouch is in his 'Much Loved' – a portrait of 4 young prostitutes living together in Marrakech, going to parties with Saudi sheikhs to dance for and ultimate have sex with the men. At the same time they function as a kind of family to hold the world at bay and provide for each other the human tenderness all humans need. (Their real families have rejected them, or left Morocco or died)The film making never feels exploitive or melodramatic. The life of a medium level hooker in Morocco is shown as neither glamorous nor the depth of hell. It's tough, it's sad, it's degrading, and yet it's clear the world isn't brimming with other ways for these women to make good money, and to live – kinda, sorta – on their own terms. It's also a powerful cry against the abuse of these women in particular but also all women (and gay men) in Morroccos patriarchal society.On the other hand, I feel like I've been here before more artfully. For example, Paul Thomas Anderson explored how porn stars and crews became each others extended family in "Boogie Nights", but did it with more style, and ultimately more insight and emotion. Whether Lizzie Borden's 'Working Girls' or many other examples, this is hardly new territory if you're not digging deeper than this film does.Clearly Ayouch is drawn to the outsiders on the edge of society. The three films of his I've seen dealt with; street urchins trying to bury a murdered friend, young boys being trained as terrorists, and now prostitutes. But there's more to exploring these worlds than being real and accepting. For me, all three films (the other two being "Ali Zaoua: Prince of the Streets" and "Horses of God") while admirable in intent, ultimately didn't go deep enough, and risk feeling like the movie equivalent of an old US 'liberal' TV movie. There's more to really understanding than a lack of moralistic preaching, or accepting the basic humanity of those whom some would deny. Still, it's well acted, and I appreciated the nice touches of humor and humanity. I just wish it was great.

DIFF: Much Loved This is a carefully portrayed account of the life of a group of courtesans in Marrakesh, Morocco. This sort of life-style has a long history in Arab, Indian and other traditions. The film has been produced with a fair amount of sensitivity and concern. The social ostracism that the beautiful women and their families experience is starkly portrayed. They experience rejection, embarrassment and humiliation from parents, children and their lovers. It is all done with a surprising amount of panache and humour. Even lesbianism has a look in. As always, the customers do not come off looking too good. There are no gangster pimps in this scenario except for a taxi driver who transports the women. We are all aware that there are cops who prey on women of this kind. Morocco is not exempt from this sort of challenge. As with all foreign films of lands which do not usually feature in mainstream cinema, I found the Moroccan street scenes, the social environment, body language, customs and homes authentic and very interesting to analyse. As expected, the film is banned in Morocco but I found the film worth seeing. In the same way that unproven medication and fake doctors should be banned, illegal prostitution should not be allowed. I think that properly controlled (by the authorities) prostitution should be legal. That protects both the customers and those who wish to exist in this way. In this age of HIV/AIDS, Herpes and other devastating venereal diseases making prostitution illegal is illogical and irrational in my opinion.

This movie is about life of prostitutes in Morocco. Every fifteen minutes, someone f**ks someone. And there are some amazing things about it. The movie, by sheer means of visual storytelling, conveys how prostitutes can be loved, raped and abused, just like anyone else, even when all the three actions, on a physically level, are just sexual acts. You also get to see prostitution as just any job. You also see the challenges with this particular job - the boycott by family members and neighbours, feeling of loss of power with powerful clients / police etc. This movie offers a fine, realistic glimpse of the life of prostitutes in Morocco, portraying a very neutral look at their lives. You relate to them on many levels (good days at work, bad days at work, cracking jokes with friends, finding support and solace in friends in times of despair etc.).Above are the things that I liked, but there are issues with the movie too. There are passages which feel either repetitive or longer than they need to be. As a feature length movie, it falters many a times in the 'pace' department. It just keeps randomly slowing down, now and then and that's some major turn off, for a movie that otherwise has so much visual stimuli to turn you on, quite literally.

-Much Loved is a 2015 French-Moroccan drama film directed by Nabil Ayouch about the prostitution scene in Marrakesh. It was screened in the Directors' Fortnight section at the 2015 Cannes Film Festival. The film has been banned in Morocco for its "contempt for moral values and the Moroccan woman". It was screened in the Contemporary World Cinema section of the 2015 Toronto International Film Festival.-It is one of the first film to address the issue of prostitution in Morocco. Telling the lives of four female sex workers, it brings to the forefront the exploitation of prostitutes by pimps and the corruption of the police, that sometimes even profits from the trade. The film stirred a national debate before it was released when a few video clips was leaked on the web. Thereafter, the lead actress received death threats and religious authorities condemned the film for portraying a negative image of Morocco, with its supporting of extramarital sex and sympathy for the homosexuals.