Monsieur
Ibrahim et les fleurs du Coran
3 Stars:
Thought-provoking
Every
person needs a father. We
need someone who will not only love us for being their child by
providing supportive, protective care, but we also need someone
who can be a role model for our developing lives.
If our own father is not available, we seek for adult male
companionship wherever it may be offered. Thought true for both
genders, this is especially true for young men who are coming
of age.
Creating an interplay
between cultures and religions that reveals our common humanity,
Francois Dupeyron directs a sub-titled French film that is disturbing
and compelling as it explores the life of a young Jewish boy and
an elderly Muslim man living a street apart in Paris.
As a young Jewish boy coming of age
in Paris,
Moses (Pierre Boulanger) watches out his window at the prostitutes
who ply their trade in the street above him.
At first we experience his father (Gilbert Melki) as being
a cold businessman who continually compares Moses to his older
brother Paulie. But as time goes by, we come to realize that
his father is not only depressed and bitter but also schizophrenic,
having hallucinated Paulie’s life and continually comparing
Moses unfavorably to him.
Moses’ mother (Isabelle Renauld)
had long ago divorced his father and was not there to care for
him in this emotionally troubled home.
This absence of a mother exacerbates his pain and causes
Moses to long for a woman’s love wherever he might get it.
At first, Moses thinks he will find
his missing love in the arms of the prostitutes, and then in the
arms of a neighboring Jewish girl.
But when the girl rejects him for another boy and he realizes
the prostitutes are paid to love him, his heart longs for guidance
and belonging.
It is in this state that he is befriended
by Monsieur Ibrahim (Omar Sharif), who is the elderly shop owner
where Moses comes daily to buy groceries.
Ibrahim affectionately nicknames him “Momo,”
which has an interesting effect on both his sense of himself and
his connection with his faith.
This is seen clearly when his mother
comes to find him after his father’s death. Moses is painting the apartment when she arrives
and, since she has never seen her son, she doesn’t realize
who he is. When asked, he answers that he is not Moses, he is Momo which, he explains, is short
for Mohammed. His identity
has shifted from the family and faith that did not love and nurture
him to the love and faith of Ibrahim, who showed
him affection and grace.
After he asks to be adopted, Momo
and Ibrahim create a unique family in which they share a journey
to Ibrahim’s hometown in Turkey. It is a trip that proves to be a final moment
in their brief but powerful bond. Upon his return, Momo takes
ownership of Ibrahim’s shop and is seen befriending the next
generation of a fatherless boy.
It is not difficult to understand
why people accept or reject their father’s religion. When loved with an unconditional acceptance
that encourages their maturing lives, a person will look to the
faith that father lives. But
when ridiculed and punished, rejected and abandoned, then the
child will look to others who will love them as a father should,
accepting their culture, name and faith as their own. It is a simple process this film demonstrates
clearly.
Discussion:
- Why
do you believe Moses’ mother abandoned him to his mentally
ill father? What would
it be like to raise a child with a person hallucinating children
who are not there, and criticizing everyone else?
- Ibrahim
explains that his life is guided by the Koran. Moses is never seen studying the Jewish
scriptures. How do you
think their relationship would have been different if Moses
had known his own scriptures and the history of his name from
his own faith?
- The
affection of the prostitutes is presented as genuine care within
the film. This humanizing
of young women who make their living this way helps us understand
and accept them. How
does it also cause us to excuse their sin?
- When
Ibrahim dies in his homeland having brought home a “son,”
there is a sense that his life has been completed although he
lost his wife so many years ago.
How did Momo’s coming into
Ibrahim’s life complete him?
________________
Cinema In Focus is a social and
spiritual movie commentary. Hal
Conklin is former mayor of Santa Barbara
and Denny Wayman is pastor of the Free
Methodist Church.
For more reviews: http://www.cinemainfocus.com.
