Review of Lila Says (2005) by Aaron B — 12 Aug 2008
This film is a romance between a French girl and an Arab boy in Marseilles. Lila talks very freely about sex and comes on very strongly to Chimo, who falls in love with her. But their romance doesn't sit well with his Arab friends, who regard Lila as a whore, and the conflict between cultures leads to violence.
SPOILER ALERT --.
It turns out that Lila is actually a fantasist and is a virgin when she is raped. Thus the film tries to have its cake and eat it too --- Lila is a madonna and a whore, but only a whore in fantasy, and thus it is okay for Chimo to love her. It would have been more interesting for Lila to have been truly different from Chimo in her approach to sex and to see him struggle more with the conflict between Arab and French culture in this respect.
I also did not clearly understand the motivation of Chimo's friends, who seem outraged that he is having a romance with Lila and take their revenge upon her. If they were religious, perhaps I could see their opposition, but they are not. So is it a normal reaction to think, "My friend is having hot sex with a beautiful French girl...why don't I rape her?".
Since I couldn't really believe the motivations of the other boys, I felt the machinery of the plot clicking here.
This review of Lila Says (2005) was written by Aaron B on 12 Aug 2008.
Lila Says has generally received positive reviews.
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