January 8–15, 1998

movie shorts

A Summer In La Goulette (Un Ete A La Goulette)

recommended

This film is a shambling but lightly enjoyable Tunisian comedy about three teenage girls whose sexual curiosity is more powerful that their parents' admonitions. In a resort town in 1967, Jews, Catholics and Muslims are brought together by their common desire to protect their daughters' virtue. There's little in the way of plot here, mostly a series of vignettes linked only by consistent energy and a sense of good will, but it all manages to cohere for the film's brief length. The vision of ripe young women eager to secure their own deflowering may seem a little dated, but it's all part of the rosy nostalgia trip. Not particularly original, Summer is unflaggingly good-natured enough to make you forgive its flaws.

—Sam Adams