#689: EL MAÂNOUNI, Ahmed: Trances (1981)

MARTIN SCORSESE'S WORLD CINEMA PROJECT {Spine #684}

EL MAÂNOUNI, Ahmed (Morocco)
Trances [1981]
Spine #689
Blu-ray


The beloved Moroccan band Nass El Ghiwane is the dynamic subject of this captivating musical documentary. Storytellers through song, with connections to political theater, the band became an international sensation (Western music critics have often referred to them as "the Rolling Stones of North Africa") thanks to their political lyrics and sublime, fully acoustic sound, which draws on the Moroccan trance music tradition. Both a concert movie and a free-form audiovisual experiment, Ahmed El Maânouni's Trances is cinematic poetry.

88 minutes
Color
Monaural
in Arabic
1:60:1 aspect ratio
Criterion Release 2013
Director/Writers


Screenplay by Ahmed El Maânouni.
Maânouni was 37 when he directed Trances.

The Film

Film Rating (0-60):

60

The Extras

The Booklet

Sixty-eight page booklet featuring an essay by Sally Shafto.

Commentary

None.

Introduction

To the film by Martin Scorsese.

Program

Featuring interviews with director Maânouni, producer Izza Génini, musician Omar Sayed, and Scorsese.

Extras Rating (0-40):

39

60 + 39 =

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