Mahbas – Solitaire Directed by Sophie Boutros

Mahbas – Solitaire

Director: Sophie Boutros

Starring: Julia Kassar, Ali El Khalil, Nadine Khoury, Betty Taoutel

Country: Lebanon, Jordan, Egypt

Year: 2016

Author Review: Roberto Matteucci

"Although you are Syrians."

In Lebanon there was a terrible civil war that lasted for fifteen years, and with about one hundred fifty thousand deaths. Syria invaded with its army the Lebanese border, occupying for many years much land. Military intervention provoked so much dead.

What happened in Lebanon helps us to understand the tragic background of the film Mahbas - Solitaire director Sophie Boutros, presented at the 13th Dubai International Film Festival.

In a Christian village in Lebanon, Therese, a beautiful middle-aged woman, lost his brother during the Civil War, hit by a bomb fired from the Syrian army.

Now she hates the Syrians.

The whole story during in one day, one beautiful sunny day: "what a day." An important day because her daughter Ghada has to introduce her boyfriend, Samer, and her parents.

An exciting event. Indeed, Therese was excited, happy, and busy preparing a big party.

Bus her daughter has been hiding their Syrian origin of the boyfriend family.

The story is conflicts, quarrels, and when all appears lost, peace between two families from different countries. The author is very smart because he can talk of a bitter events hidden by happy, cheerful, fun tension happening.

There is also the brother. He died but Therese has filled the house with his photographs and continues to speak to him. With a surreal tone, his brother comes to life in the picture and replied.

There are other characters in the country, as a former boyfriend of Ghada. A male, still in love of her, now tango instructor and mechanic.

The working mechanisms of the movie are elaborated on the differences between the two families.

Therese hates Syrians, on the other hand, the family of Samir - rich and snobbish - does not tolerate that the elegant son, with good job, marry a girl from a normal family of a Lebanese village.

The mother of Samir is very haughty and arrogant and comes into conflict with Therese. She doesn’t want that marriage would happen: "He is not a groom yet." This character contrasts with her husband, a friendly man; he does not mind the small country, the people and the new family. The wife is talkative and gossipy, her husband did not dare to reply, passively accepting all his decisions, and he sighs: "Not all men control their wives."

The author plays with the two differences, and the racism of both.

Theresa reaches a peace with the Syrian people; the mother of Samir understands that the Ghada family is a great family although it is not rich.

Great performance of Julia Kassar, she is a wonderful woman, and she pushes us to understand that we don’t have to hate a people.