17 rue Bleue

Colour, 35mm
France, 2001, 95 min
Section: Maghreb

Synopsis

The year is 1967. In spite of the fact that the war in Algeria is drawing to an end, Adda takes her two boys and heads with her sisters to Paris. There they live comfortably and well provided for at 17 rue Bleue thanks to Adda’s successful and influential (though all-too-married) lover. After the lover’s sudden death, however, Adda forges his unfinished will in the hope of holding on to the lifestyle she and her sons undoubtedly deserve. Some years later the older son, Chad, watches his formerly carefree and attractive mother’s gradual physical and mental decline. Adda carries on a futile inheritance and struggles against her former lover’s ex-wife. She eventually sends the younger of her two neglected sons to live with relatives, and her own decline is rounded out with popping pills. Director Chad Chenouga said about his film: “I know that 17 Rue Bleue will always have a very special place for me, aside from being my first feature film. The place of my first loves, my first wounds, forever open. . . .”

About the director

Chad Chenouga (b. 1962, Paris) has concentrated on shorts up to now, including Rue Bleue which screened at Cannes and received a César nomination in 1998. 17 rue Bleue is his feature directorial debut.