The Arabic title of Franco-Moroccan director Nabil Ayouch’s empowering hip-hop fable translates loosely as “rise your voice”, while in France, where the film competed for the Cannes Palme d’Or, it’s known as Haut et fort – “high and loud”. Both monikers perfectly capture the vibrant spirit of this stirring street musical, described by its creator as arising out of “the desire to make a film to give voice to young people”. On one level it’s a patchwork of popular cinematic tropes, combining the strength-through-music themes of films as diverse as 8 Mile and School of Rock with the inspirational classroom formats of everything from Blackboard Jungle to Dead Poets Society. But there’s also a strong whiff of the discursive politics of Ken Loach’s Land and Freedom, mixed with the accessible rebellion of Jafar Panahi’s Offside or Deniz Gamze Ergüven’s Mustang – a heady brew indeed.
Real-life rapper turned teacher Anas Basbousi keeps things close to home as new teacher at an arts centre in the Sidi Moumen district of Casablanca, an area still stained by the spectre of fomenting terrorism. On his first day, Anas boldly spray-paints the wall of his classroom, only to be told that it’s not his classroom – it’s a classroom, one that is used by others who don’t necessarily appreciate his rebellious free-form vibe. Tensions increase when Anas meets his class, played by screen first-timers scouted at Les Étoiles de Sidi Moumen (a cultural centre co-founded by Ayouch), whose real lives inspired their fictional on-screen alter egos. As each student takes the floor to show the new teacher what they can do, he dismissively bats aside their efforts, accusing them of failing to use their authentic voices and reducing one misfit to tears for bragging about a life that bears little resemblance to his own.
