Downton Abbey: A New Era film review
A second big-screen helping of Julian Fellowes’ drama
This “hip-hop-flavoured coming-of-age drama” is about a group of Moroccan teenagers learning to question “the repressive attitudes and adult hypocrisies they see all around them”, said Alistair Harkness in The Scotsman. The film is set in an arts centre in a deprived suburb of Casablanca, where former rapper Anas (Anas Basbousi) has been employed to teach hip-hop to local youths. He’s an inspirational teacher, but his tough-love methods don’t go down well with the centre’s administrators. Director Nabil Ayouch then passes the mic to his charismatic pupils (played by non-professional actors), whom we see learning “to use rap to articulate who they are while negotiating complicated home lives, religious obligations and gender inequality”.
The Arabic title of this “empowering” film translates as “rise your voice”; while in France, the film is called Haut et fort, meaning “high and loud”, said Mark Kermode in The Observer. Both titles encapsulate the film’s “vibrant spirit”. Although it’s “clear from the outset” where the plot is heading, the film has an “infectious energy” that draws viewers into the lives of its characters.
I’m afraid I found it hackneyed, said Robbie Collin in The Daily Telegraph. It “largely consists of the same three scenes on rotation”: classroom squabbles about weighty issues; vignettes from the students’ personal lives; and writing and performance sessions, “in which you’d have to concede the results tend to be spirited rather than great”. Casablanca Beats “just about gets by on restless teenage energy and its bustle of winning young faces”, but it’s too “relentlessly perky”, earnest and simplistic to work.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
-
Today's political cartoons - November 24, 2024
Cartoons Sunday's cartoons - taped bananas, flying monkeys, and more
By The Week US Published
-
The Spanish cop, 20 million euros and 13 tonnes of cocaine
In the Spotlight Óscar Sánchez Gil, Chief Inspector of Spain's Economic and Tax Crimes Unit, has been arrested for drug trafficking
By The Week UK Published
-
5 hilarious cartoons about the rise and fall of Matt Gaetz
Cartoons Artists take on age brackets, backbiting, and more
By The Week US Published
-
Long summer days in Iceland's highlands
The Week Recommends While many parts of this volcanic island are barren, there is a 'desolate beauty' to be found in every corner
By The Week UK Published
-
Damian Barr shares his favourite books
The Week Recommends The writer and broadcaster picks works by Alice Walker, Elif Shafak and others
By The Week UK Published
-
The Great Mughals: a 'treasure trove' of an exhibition
The Week Recommends The V&A's new show is 'spell-binding'
By The Week UK Published
-
Aston Martin Vanquish: 'the best Aston Martin full stop'?
The Week Recommends The third-generation Vanquish 'offers spectacular performance'
By The Week UK Published
-
Her Lotus Year: Paul French's new biography sets lurid rumours straight
The Week Recommends Wallis Simpson's year in China is less scandalous, but 'more interesting' than previously thought
By The Week UK Published
-
Say Nothing: 'sensational' dramatisation of Patrick Radden Keefe's bestselling book
The Week Recommends The series is a 'powerful reminder' of the Troubles
By The Week UK Published
-
Joy: fertility film starring Bill Nighy offers 'dose of seasonal cheer'
The Week Recommends The film about the invention of the fertility treatment is 'unassuming' but may 'sneak up on you'
By The Week UK Published
-
Ed Park's 6 favorite works about self reflection and human connection
Feature The Pulitzer Prize finalist recommends works by Jason Rekulak, Gillian Linden, and more
By The Week US Published