Much Loved transgressions: Morocco’s reflection in the mirror of its young prostitutes

Abstract

Much Loved, a Moroccan movie by director Nabil Ayouch released in French cinemas in 2015 and selected at La Quinzaine des Réalisateurs in Cannes the same year, represents a major turning point in the history of national cinema. Officially banned from screens by the Moroccan Ministry of Communications one week after its premiere in Cannes, it unleashed an emotional storm and an unprecedented debate in the Moroccan society without ever having been seen by the public and only on the basis of some extracts leaked on the internet. The movie relates the lives of four young women living on prostitution in the touristic city of Marrakesh. This article provides an in-depth analysis of the factors of transgression carried by the movie and how they enable a better understanding of its violent mirroring impact on the Moroccan society.