Caramel (Sukkar Banat) (PG))

Thursday 24th September 2009
Nadine Labaki 2007 - 95 mins
France/Lebanon
Language: Arabic/French

This Lebanese film lives up to its titular substance without being too sugary.  Actress Labaki co-wrote and directed Caramel, an ensemble comedy set in and around a Beirut beauty salon.  Layale is a beautician torn by her secret affiar with a married man.  Her co-worker Nisrine is about to get married, but withholds a secret from her fiancé and hides her modern looks from his family. Shampooist Rima lusts after a female customer and aging actress Jamal makes frequent visits to the salon to try to measure up to her younger competition.

Score:  75.81%

Some Members' Comments:

Colourful and entertaining.
Lovely 'soft-centred' film.
They were all so lovely you just wanted them to be happy.
'Hey Habibi' - very happy, touching stories!!
Touching and brilliant
Two thumbs up - way up.  A simply beautiful protrayl of the complexities of Lebanese culture.
It kept me smiling the whole way through, really got caught in the characters.
Thoroughly enjoyed it.  Not the vaguest idea what it was about!

Poignant, touching, in a way that only the French can do.
What a nice surprise!
A lot more cheerful than last week's film.
Cleverly put together, giving great insight into life of these women in Beirut.
Different - a pleasure to watch - sad and entertaining.
Got quite bored.
Very sweet, Lebanese Pedro Almodovar.
Delightful, made me laugh and cry.

The trouble they go to for us blokes!
Should use treacle.

Girly, or what.