jackasstrange This Franco-Tunisian film about an arabian family in France is extraordinary. Not only is a delightful piece of art, made by someone who really loves to show and more important than all, value the small things on life. Abdellatif Kechiche's 'La Graine et le Mulet ' is a fulfilling experience for those who are starving for a film that is both intellectually and emotionally impactive. With the close- ups in the face of the characters dialoguing, and the totally realistic, raw atmosphere and art direction, creates a feeling of intimacy between the viewer and the characters on this film, even if you have never seen them before. Also, the characters often are shown doing day-to-day things, eating in the table, but yet, everything works in function to the plot. Nothing really seems pointless. That's perhaps what is more fantastic about this film. The acting is also great. Certainly you won't regret watching this amazing film. The only complaint I have is due the fact the film is way wordier. 9/10

Douglas kas One that likes generalizations may say that French movies often get trapped in what one may call "a presumptuous way of looking at life". Always that unadjusted narrative, and of course the mysterious/pseudo-philosophical ending. Well, this one is a French contemporary movie that is not attached formulas. The contemplative look is sure french, however the measure is precise. It provides an unbelievable and unexpected intimacy with the characters, which is only recognized by the viewer as the movie comes to the end. Offering a particular time frame that values a constant and naturalistic look at the sequences, this movie conducts you through the beauty of simple things in life as if it was the greatest conquests of human kind.

TravelerThruKalpas Abdel Kechiche's heartfelt attempt to render the difficulties and vicissitudes of the Arab minority experience in contemporary France is an admirable and engaging one, at least initially. For the first half of what transpires to be an overlong engagement (at two and a half hours), he's quite adept at delineating the minute emotional and psychological registers of his characters in a style reminiscent of Cassavettes. There's a strong pull in the way the predominance of close-ups and streams of rambling, continuous and naturalistic dialogue propel the viewer into an almost claustrophobic intimacy with the lives of Slimane's immediate and extended family members. One very good payoff inherent in this approach are the numerous suggestions of deeper emotional interests barely withheld even while words are ostensibly offered as honest indicators between people, which does much to contribute a charged and vibrant texture to their various interactions. Unfortunately, this rather heightened naturalism is drastically compromised by Kechiche's shift into unsuccessful melodrama, by way of crudely manipulating plot mechanics to forcibly generate suspense and push the emotional temperature, convincingly delineated up to now through ample character development, in a clichéd and much less satisfying direction for the film's remainder. It's a shame, as it has the effect of belittling so many of the outstanding performances his wonderful cast contributes to make the film memorable, and which not least earn much of our sympathies along the way. The complexities of the relationships which he so carefully orchestrated and which served to move us legitimately, get sadly displaced by contrived events which eclipse this previously far richer focus by substituting a suspense thriller gambit: will things end in total disaster... or can they be saved? This seems like dishonest film-making since throughout the film, Kechiche has readily suggested some of the ways which could possibly work against Slimane's plans to successfully operate his restaurant boat, and some of these are presented quite clearly as tantalizing possibilities. However (and without revealing the ultimate fate of the restaurant's inaugural evening party), what appears as impending failure is entirely due, not to contingencies of personal, social or political elements in conflict with his plans, but sadly an unnecessary creative interference imposed by nothing more than a scriptwriter's decree: an artificially generated happenstance which derails everything. As if this weren't enough, Kechiche additionally forces the pathos needlessly by introducing yet a second incident, which not only further dashes Slimane's hopes, but unfortunately marks the film's entry into an unsubtle realm of allegory, with the action suddenly acquiring a burden of obvious metaphorical meaning, an approach that has been heavily (and heavy-handedly) favored in films by Makhmalbaf, and which make his films relentlessly unsatisfying. And so the film quickly devolves even further into one in which the diminishing returns are painfully drawn out for the remaining hour or so, with fully predictable results. By forcing a symbolic dimension on his character's plight rather than maintaining his earlier naturalism, Kechiche effectively eradicates the conviction previously established in his efforts to raise our consciousness about the human condition, through a fair range of many foibles and attributes of character generously displayed. To be fair, there is some last-moment evidence (on the part of some of the characters) of the lengths which the human spirit willingly contributes whatever efforts possible to salvage an impending disaster, but an ability to come across as genuinely moving has already been undone. Considering the personal cost for Slimane in realizing his project, Kechiche's ill-judged narrative choices aren't just a major disappointment merely because he opted to apply the kind of cheap plot devices all too typical of the dramatic expediency found in Hollywood films. In this light, it appears an act of disregard for his earlier humanism and hard-won truths, so it's an especially ethical disappointment as well.

Howard Schumann Tunisian born French director Abdellatif Kechiche's third feature Secret of the Grain is dedicated to his father whose silence after a long day of hard work reflects the demeanor of the film's lead protagonist, Slimane Beiji (Habib Boufares), a Tunisian immigrant who has been laid off from his job in the shipyards after thirty five years. Winner of best picture, director, screen play and actress awards at the 2008 Cesar Awards, the film is not a Loach-type work of social consciousness but a rich, varied, multi-layered family drama that is universal in its appeal. Although the English title of the film suggests there is some secret held by the grain, the only secret in Secret of the Grain is how Kechiche manages to seamlessly weld together into a cohesive whole such disparate elements as the traditions of great cooking, the problems immigrants confront when dealing with white authority, and the desire to leave a legacy to your children.Set in the French coastal village of Séte on the Mediterranean, the grain in the title refers to couscous, a diet staple of Tunisian immigrants and a dish that Slimane hopes to use to turn a dilapidated old boat into a profitable restaurant with his ex-wife Souad (Bouraouia Marzouk) doing the cooking. Shot with a hand-held camera that bobs and weaves through long takes of eating, animated dinner conversations, and emotional family disputes, the 151-minute Secret of the Grain has the authenticity you would expect if you accidentally stumbled into a Greek restaurant where an animated family dinner was taking place. In a scene at one of the two family dinners that take up half of the film, the length and variety of facial close-ups of people chewing, laughing, and talking in multi-cultural accents is staggering.The centerpiece of the film is Slimane and his clan consisting of his two sons, five daughters, grandchildren, his ex-wife Souad, his lover Latifa (Hatika Karaoui), and her fiery twenty-year-old daughter Rym (Hafsia Herzi) who adores Slimane and whose energy and business acumen is the catalyst for his risky venture. Slimane, a man of sixty-one whose periods of silence stand in sharp contrast to the loquaciousness of his family, lives in a modest room in a weather-beaten hotel run by Latifa. A generous man, Slimane collects fish from his fisherman friends and delivers them each week to Souad, his older daughter Karima (Faridah Benkhetache); and Latifa.The first hour delves into mundane family matters. When Slimane visits his eldest daughter Karima (Farida Benkhetache) to deliver some fish, Karima's anger at her three year-old daughter who refuses the potty dominates the conversation which continues for almost ten minutes interspersed with comments about the decline of the shipping industry. Other extended domestic scenes revolve around the escapades of Slimane's irresponsible son Majid (Sami Zitouni) whose extra-marital affairs threaten to drive his Russian wife Julia (Alice Houri) out of the family. The idea of starting a restaurant at age sixty-one raises much skepticism in the community and Slimane's plans are considered too thin and too unsupported by economic reality by the bank he asks for a loan.To prove the worth of his idea, however, Slimane invites one hundred city officials, potential investors, friends and family to the boat that he, Rym, and his son Riadh (Mohamed Benabdeslem) painstakingly renovated. The opening night turns out to be an astonishing tour de force that combines life-affirming exuberance, sensual music and belly dancing, and an avoidable crisis that leads to heightened family tension and a suspenseful final half hour. Kechiche, a former movie and TV actor, has assembled an outstanding ensemble cast with first rate performances, especially from Boufares and Herzi. Though the film has many discussions about food, it is not a feel-good "food movie" but a complex, deeply intense narrative that elevates one family's personal struggles into a drama of epic scope.