In a time when too many movies are rides on an exploding roller coaster, it's a rare pleasure to find a film that's more like a warm bath.
Director François Dupeyron has drawn filmgoers such a bath - and a lovely character study - in "Monsieur Ibrahim."
The film traces the relationship of Moses, a Jewish boy (Pierre Boulanger), and Ibrahim (Omar Sharif), an elderly Muslim shopkeeper, in early 1960s Paris.
Moses is growing up too fast, visiting the hookers who lounge on his street and barely tolerating living with his depressive father. Moses' mother left a long time ago and his father constantly compares him, unfavorably, to an older brother, also said to have deserted the family.
The boy soon finds refuge in Ibrahim's tiny, cramped grocery store. It's a refuge from the boy's shabby apartment and his shabby relationship with his father.
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The bond between the boy and the grocer grows when Moses' dad deserts him and Ibrahim adopts him. Ibrahim takes Moses to his native Turkey, cementing the bond between the two.
The role of Ibrahim brings out all the old pro in Omar Sharif.
Sharif has a truly great face - craggy, handsome and expressive. In fact, one of the movie's many visual joys is the contrast between Sharif's elderly good looks and the unlined, young handsomeness of Boulanger.
Sharif leavens his performance with gentle good humor.
Many of his lines are profundities that, in the wrong mouth, would sound like something Yoda would say on an off day. But Sharif pulls it off, shading the words with knowing but not self-satisfied wisdom.
Perhaps taking his cue from his veteran co-star, Boulanger also gives a subtle performance that comes from his eyes as much as anywhere.
He keeps a tight lid on his tightly wrapped Moses, letting the kid's likability just peep through at the same time he projects a heartbreaking emotional neediness.
The film is wonderfully photographed. Dupeyron's hand-held camera gives much of the movie a cinema verite look. At other times, he lets the camera linger to great effect.
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A scene in a Turkish mosque, where Sufi dervishes do their hypnotic, whirling dance, is shot so gorgeously that you nearly don't want it to end.
What may seem to be a weakness in the story actually is a strength. Dupeyron doesn't do much with the religious difference between the boy and old man; he could have made a corker of a topical story. But in focusing instead on relationships, emotions and needs, the director has fashioned a much more timeless and affecting story untainted by politics.
The film's pacing is a bit uneven; the second act, in particular, is a little slower than it could be.
Still, it's a lovely story lovingly and gently told. And if you're going to take that nice, warm bath, you might as well take the time to enjoy it.
Readers can reach Forum reporter Tom Pantera at (701) 241-5541
Movie Review
"Monsieur Ibrahim"
Fargo Theatre
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Rated R
95 minutes
Three out of four stars
