The Syrian Bride (2004)

88% of critics liked it
(41 reviews)
55% of users liked it
(15,848 ratings)

A family deals with the typical anxieties of a wedding day while also confronting the political turmoil of the Middle East in this drama, a collaboration between Israeli and Palestinian filmmakers. Hammed (Makram J. Khoury) is a leading political figure in Majdal Shams, a Druze community that has… More A family deals with the typical anxieties of a wedding day while also confronting the political turmoil of the Middle East in this drama, a collaboration between Israeli and Palestinian filmmakers. Hammed (Makram J. Khoury) is a leading political figure in Majdal Shams, a Druze community that has been under Israeli occupation since the late '60s. Years ago, Hammed arranged for his daughter Mona (Clara Khoury) to marry Tallel (Derar Sliman), who has since become a successful actor in Syria. Hammed has gathered the family together to see Mona off, but the occasion is a bittersweet one -- given the combative relationship between Israel and Syria, once Mona crosses the border with her husband, it's unlikely she will ever be able to return. Hammed's oldest son, Hattem (Eyad Sheety), comes back from Russia, where he now lives with his wife, but his father still refuses to forgive him for leaving the land of his birth. Marwan (Ashraf Barhoum), a younger son, is a businessman living in Italy who uses his visit home as an opportunity to visit Jeanne (Julie-Anne Roth), an American United Nations representative he's been dating. And daughter Amal (Hiam Abbass) helps her sister Mona deal with the stress and details of her big day as she struggles to live as a modern woman while married to Amin (Adnan Tarabshi), who wants his spouse to follow a more traditional path. Makram J. Khoury was ideally cast as Hammed in at least one respect -- he's the real life father of Clara Khoury, who plays his screen daughter Mona. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

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Rating, Runtime: Unrated, 1 hr. 38 min.
Directed By: Eran Riklis
Genres: Art House & International, Comedy, Drama

In Theaters: Nov 16, 2005 Wide
On DVD: Jun 6, 2006
Studio: Koch Lorber Films

Critic Reviews

Jeff Strickler, Minneapolis Star Tribune
Political dramas and soap operas don't have much in common, which makes this hybrid as surprising as it is entertaining.
Carrie Rickey, Philadelphia Inquirer
An engrossing absurdist comedy.
Ruthe Stein, San Francisco Chronicle
A thoughtful and engaging film set in the turbulent Golan Heights.
Kenneth Turan, Los Angeles Times
It is written, directed and acted with real compassion and sympathy for the humanity of its characters, no matter who they are or on what side of these multiple issues they turn out to be.
John Monaghan, Detroit Free Press
The movie charms while making a bold statement about the borders that governments and individuals construct to keep each other apart.
Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times
The real interest in the film enters by the side door, through supporting characters.
Enrique Buchichio, Uruguay Total
(...) Aunque irregular y con algunos personajes que bordean el estereotipo, es un drama humano y casi siempre conmovedor (...)
Maria Garcia, Film Journal International
Unrelentingly pedantic, it's also utterly humorless.
Chris Hewitt (St. Paul), St. Paul Pioneer Press
Riklis performs a delicate balancing act, juggling a half-dozen plotlines, each of which is made vivid by his terrific cast.
Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat, Spirituality and Practice
An extraordinary Israeli film that is unlike any other wedding film ever made!
Marjorie Baumgarten, Austin Chronicle
While the film's depiction of bureaucratic frustrations and familial woe are universal, the characters themselves can be difficult to warm up to and often seem as arid as their surroundings.
Marta Barber, Miami Herald
This Israeli film gives us an honest look at situations we never see in the news. It may have too many flaws to be a good film, but for its content, it is a winner.
Bob Strauss, Los Angeles Daily News
It's a lovely little film that puts a big, big bite on some very large issues.
Tim Grierson, L.A. Weekly
All politics is personal, but rarely has that credo been illustrated so winningly as with Eran Riklis' delicate comedy about the maddening intersection of families, cultures and borders.
Jules Brenner, Cinema Signals
As enjoyable a piece of cultural satire as any that's come out of this highly troubled region.

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Featured Audience Ratings

Walter M

[font=Century Gothic]In "The Syrian Bride", it is Mona's wedding day. What complicates this is that she is a member of the Druze people living in the occupied Golan Heights area of Israel. She has not met her future husband. He is a popular television personality in… More
[font=Century Gothic]In "The Syrian Bride", it is Mona's wedding day. What complicates this is that she is a member of the Druze people living in the occupied Golan Heights area of Israel. She has not met her future husband. He is a popular television personality in Syria. Once she gets married, she will go to Syria and cannot return. Her family will never see her again.(Family conferences tend to be conducted by bullhorn over the border.) [/font] [font=Century Gothic][/font] [font=Century Gothic]Mona's father is on parole and cannot venture to the border to see her off. Her sister is married with children and seeks to restart her education. One brother is a wheeler-dealer returning from Italy. Another brother is persona non grata for the past eight years for marrying a Russian woman.(The Druze elders have threatened to disown the father if he accepts him back.) Oh and there is the pro-Syria demonstration happening on the same day...[/font] [font=Century Gothic][/font] [font=Century Gothic]"The Syrian Bride" would be truly surreal if the situation was not so serious. This is an excellent, multi-layered film that contrasts the Druze who are stuck between two countries and the draconian treatment of the women. It is hard to believe there are arranged marriages in this day and age. [/font]
Nicolas K

Not much of a political statement and not much of a drama either. I did not connect to the main characters and after a while all I wanted to do was fast forward to the end. Solid performances by the whole cast did not save the film from mediocracy.

Cast

Hiam Abbass
as Amal
Makram Khoury
as Hammed
Clara Khoury
as Mona

Ashraf Barhom
as Marwan
Eyad Sheety
as Hattem
Evelyne Kaplum
as Evelyna

See full cast

The Syrian Bride (2004)

Critic Reviews

Featured Audience Ratings

Walter M

Nicolas K

Cast

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