Hideous Kinky 1999

Julia, the beautiful impetuous twenty five year-old single mother of Bea (8) and Lucy (6) has abandoned life in dreary London and brought her daughters to Marrakech, determined that they should enjoy a different upbringing to her own. It is Christmas. In a cafe in the square in Marrakech medina they eagerly open the presents sent by their estranged father in London and try to quell their disappointment as they realise they have been sent the wrong parcel, and that these presents were meant for one of father's other "wives" and a son. Julia wants to take the family on a journey to Algeria, where she plans to visit a Sufi she has heard about. Her ultimate quest is "annihilation of the ego", but meanwhile the family tries to exist between the cheques that arrive infrequently from their absent-minded father. In the city square the two little girls watch a show as an acrobat and an old man entertain the crowd. Lucy is entranced and introduces her mother to Bilal the acrobat, a young man who clearly lives on his wits. There is an immediate attraction between Julia and Bilal. As the money dwindles Julia makes dolls to sell in the streets. Bilal moves into the hotel room with Julia and the girls. He encourages Lucy and Bea to practice acrobatics as a way to entertain tourists and make money.