17 rue Bleue

What starts out as a lively if seemingly somewhat bland account of an Algerian woman coming with her kids to live in France at the end of the Algerian War pretty soon takes an interesting turn into far darker territory when her married lover - who has always supported her - dies unexpectedly. Adda decides to fight for his fortune in court, but his wife has other ideas, and Adda, her two boys and her sisters fall on hard times. If there's nothing especially remarkable about the film, it does at least boast a muscular storyline that never flinches from dealing with real pain, a clutch of vivid naturalistic performances, and an aura of authenticity born of the fact that the film is autobiographical. Strong stuff.