Caramel and other sweet things

2/2/08

Caramel
Written and directed by Nadine Labaki

Caramel is a lovely little Lebanese slice of life. The film centers around a small beauty shop in Beirut, and tells the stories of the women who work there, their customers, and people in the neighborhood. The filmmaker Nadine Labaki plays the owner of the beauty shop, and most of the rest of the cast consists of unprofessional actors, who look and act exactly right. There's not a lot of plot here--the women bond and deal with romantic issues, for the most part--but the film shows us a Beirut we don't hear much about, a lovely city inhabited by regular people, Christians and Muslims who live and work together. This is a nice gentle film, one that will warm you up on a winter day. The film has opened in New York and Los Angeles, and will work its way into the hinterlands soon.

Video notes:

TVOR saw Caramel while spending a few days at the Palm Springs International Film Festival. TVOR loves film festivals. So many choices, so many opportunities step into the unknown. Sure, sometimes you get a nasty surprise, but sometimes you are unexpectedly delighted as well. With this posting TVOR will start occasionally listing some of her film festival favorites now available on video. These are films that found only limited distribution, or none at all, but thanks to DVD, can be seen by a wider audience than that hardy group of cinephiles who haunt film festivals. The first group includes a few American indies:

King of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters
Directed by Seth Gordon

King of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters is just out on video this Super Bowl week. And how appropriate. On Sunday, the two top football teams will duke it out. And in this documentary film, the two best Donkey Kong players in the world will fight for a championship as well. We, the viewers, have our favorite, and we root for him in his battle against his tough opponent. And this is as it should be. If you think video games (and particularly ones from decades ago) are boring, and a movie about a video game championship battle couldn't possibly be of interest, TVOR understands completely, for she once felt as you do. She still thinks that video games are boring, but this movie about a video game championship is anything but. Check out TVOR's posting of 9/4/07 for more information if you're interested.

Four Sheets to the Wind
Written and directed by Sterlin Harjo

This is a coming of age film about a young Native American man who leaves the reservation and goes to the big city of Tulsa. Sweet and low-key, it's definitely worth watching.

Swimmers
Written and directed by Doug Sadler

Another coming of age story, this one is a family drama set on the Maryland coast, with quite a few things going on simultaneously (as they tend to in families). The central character is a twelve year old girl, and the story is largely seen from her point of view. The film has a strong sense of place and is beautifully acted.

The Big Bad Swim
Directed by Ishai Setton

There is no similarity between this swimming film and the one above. The Big Bad Swim is a comedy about an adult swimming class for those who are afraid of the water, taught by an ex-Olympic athlete who has his own issues. Each student has his or her own story, and they are woven together quite nicely.

Rocket Science
Written and directed by Jeffrey Blitz

Hey, how about another coming of age story, this one about high school debating as an introduction to life? Oh, and the kid stutters, too. Filmmaker Jeffrey Blitz's last film was the wonderful documentary Spellbound, about several contestants competing at the National Spelling Bee. It turns out he can make narrative films too. Rocket Science is funny and wonderful as our protagonist begins to learn about debate, life, and love.