Synopsis
Fatima, an Algerian-born woman who now lives in France with her two teenage daughters, with whom she is barely able to communicate.
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Cast
- Soria ZeroualFatima
- Zita HanrotNesrine
- Kenza Noah AïcheSouad
- Chawki AmariThe Father
- Dalila BencherifLeila
- Edith SaulnierSéverine
- Mehdi SenoussiLe prof de sport
- Franck AndrieuxThe Doctor
- Yolanda MpeleSali
- Rachid YousThe Guy on the Train
Recommendations
- 90
Los Angeles Times
Faucon, whose own grandparents came to France without speaking the language, has a gift for artfully removing the melodrama from potentially overheated situations, leaving behind a scenario that is honest, direct and dramatic without any sense of special pleading or situations pushed too hard. - 80
Variety
This poignant slice-of-life proves as modest in length (78 minutes) as it is generous in rueful insight and emotional complexity. - 80
The New York Times
If the movie, loosely based on two books by Fatima Elayoubi, tells a familiar story of immigrants struggling to make something of themselves in an alien culture (Fatima speaks some French but reads only Arabic), it does so in a tone that is kindhearted but clearheaded, and the performances are low-key and believable. - 75
The Film Stage
Fatima inevitably falls into a catch-22: every time it presents an insightful new cultural situation, it starts to feel less like a film, and more like a series of richly detailed sketches. - 70
Screen Daily
Faucon, obviously very fond of all his characters, carefully avoids the patterns that many genre films fall into. - 67
Christian Science Monitor
Well-observed and unassuming as this film is, it glides along rather too blandly. - 60
The Hollywood Reporter
One of the flaws that keeps the film being as engaging as it might be is the way every shot seems to last about the same amount of time, producing a monotonous visual rhythm that only serves to make the plot seem even more episodic. - 50
Slant Magazine
The film appears to have been devised to pander to the presumptions of Western, liberal viewers.
