The Silences Of The Palace

Synopsis

Original Title: Samt el qusur

In 1994, Moufida Tlatli proved that melodrama is not a dying form and that it doesn't need to conform to the standards of Hollywood, Bollywood, or Cairo. The Silences of the Palace (1994) unfolds through flashbacks, transporting us to the era of the French Protectorate in Tunisia. Yet its style is sensual, especially in its portrayal of the women who worked in the palace, most notably in the kitchen, which serves as the film’s beating heart. Tlatli wrote the film in response to her own mother’s sudden and severe illness, a moment that made her realise how little she truly knew about her life.

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