69
Metascore
9 reviews · Provided by Metacritic.com
- 90Los Angeles TimesKenneth TuranLos Angeles TimesKenneth TuranFaucon, 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.
- 80VarietyJustin ChangVarietyJustin ChangThis poignant slice-of-life proves as modest in length (78 minutes) as it is generous in rueful insight and emotional complexity.
- 80The New York TimesStephen HoldenThe New York TimesStephen HoldenIf 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.
- 75The Film StageMichael SnydelThe Film StageMichael SnydelFatima 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.
- 70Screen DailyDan FainaruScreen DailyDan FainaruFaucon, obviously very fond of all his characters, carefully avoids the patterns that many genre films fall into.
- 67Christian Science MonitorPeter RainerChristian Science MonitorPeter RainerWell-observed and unassuming as this film is, it glides along rather too blandly.
- 60The Hollywood ReporterLeslie FelperinThe Hollywood ReporterLeslie FelperinOne 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.
- 50Slant MagazineClayton DillardSlant MagazineClayton DillardThe film appears to have been devised to pander to the presumptions of Western, liberal viewers.
- 50Village VoiceBilge EbiriVillage VoiceBilge EbiriFaucon has built his story around very gentle, glancing blows. But this is not the focused austerity of a Robert Bresson; the director’s level distance and jaded eye lead more to lifelessness than a revealing simplicity of expression.