Arab Blues is a pretty formulaic film, but made remarkable for its socially realistic depiction of life in Tunis, Tunisia. The film follows a young psychoanalyst returning to her homeland from France, Selma (played excellently by Franco-Iranian actress Golshifteh Farahani), trying to set up a practise in a land where psychotherapy is considered a Western luxury.
This film's best aspect is its slice of life nature; the concept lends itself well to getting into a colourful cast of character's lives, as they reveal deep and dark secrets they probably wouldn't in a society where "face" and honour are so important. We also get a nice sense of what Tunisians care about: improving their country, dealing with (and ultimately accepting) petty corruption, the "right" way to practise Islam, the role of women, the importance of family. There's a lot in this relatively short film.
Yet, I couldn't help but feel, despite its gorgeous cinematography, likeable characters, refreshingly light hearted tone, that this film could've done more. Many threads are left unfinished, which leads to a somewhat unsatisfying conclusion. Maybe it's the point; life doesn't really follow a neat path. The primary conflict is one mostly settled off screen and no, maybe it's unrealistic to end in a way that ties everything together. But, at the end of the day, this is a movie.
And if realism is what the film was going for, I don't really buy it. There's a lot in this film that doesn't feel that way - which is fine - so, why not just embrace the hokey nature of the story?
Overall, I'd definitely recommend this film. I'm always going to be a bit kinder to movies that are from places I don't typically see them, but this isn't a charity score. This is a pretty fun, enjoyable film.
This film's best aspect is its slice of life nature; the concept lends itself well to getting into a colourful cast of character's lives, as they reveal deep and dark secrets they probably wouldn't in a society where "face" and honour are so important. We also get a nice sense of what Tunisians care about: improving their country, dealing with (and ultimately accepting) petty corruption, the "right" way to practise Islam, the role of women, the importance of family. There's a lot in this relatively short film.
Yet, I couldn't help but feel, despite its gorgeous cinematography, likeable characters, refreshingly light hearted tone, that this film could've done more. Many threads are left unfinished, which leads to a somewhat unsatisfying conclusion. Maybe it's the point; life doesn't really follow a neat path. The primary conflict is one mostly settled off screen and no, maybe it's unrealistic to end in a way that ties everything together. But, at the end of the day, this is a movie.
And if realism is what the film was going for, I don't really buy it. There's a lot in this film that doesn't feel that way - which is fine - so, why not just embrace the hokey nature of the story?
Overall, I'd definitely recommend this film. I'm always going to be a bit kinder to movies that are from places I don't typically see them, but this isn't a charity score. This is a pretty fun, enjoyable film.