The Syrian Bride
Koch Lorber Films | Release Date: November 16, 2005 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
70
METASCORE
Generally favorable reviews based on 23 Critic Reviews
Positive:
19
Mixed:
4
Negative:
0

Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
88
TV Guide MagazineKen Fox
There is, however, considerable humor to what might have been an exceedingly grim film, and most of it comes courtesy of Mona's slippery brother, Marwan (Ashraf Barhoum). Read full review
80
SalonAndrew O'Hehir
An extraordinary social comedy. Read full review
80
L.A. WeeklyTim Grierson
By crafting its message in mostly understated strokes, The Syrian Bride touches your heart, which you might not even fully realize until its deft, wordless final moments sweep by you. Read full review
80
Los Angeles TimesKenneth Turan
Written, directed and acted with real compassion and sympathy for the humanity of its characters, no matter who they are or on what side of these multiple issues they turn out to be. Read full review
80
NewsweekDavid Ansen
The Syrian Bride would be an out-and-out comedy were it set anywhere but in the Middle East. Read full review
75
New York PostV.A. Musetto
Tackling serious issues with humor and understanding, the film portrays Mona's woes as a microcosm of the entire mess in the Middle East. Read full review
75
New York Daily NewsElizabeth Weitzman
The result is both tragic and darkly comic - in this complex environment, blame and sorrow are locked in a partnership of absurdity. Read full review
75
Boston GlobeTy Burr
The Syrian Bride could be one of those big, teeming matrimony comedies like "Monsoon Wedding" or "Father of the Bride" but for the barbed wire running right down the middle of the aisle. Read full review
75
Seattle Post-IntelligencerSean Axmaker
The triumphs still are affecting, the setting is compelling and some of the human moments amid the political circus and culture wars are downright moving. Read full review
75
Chicago TribuneMichael Phillips
Like the whole of this easygoing plea for a better future, it's sweet. Read full review
75
Chicago Sun-TimesRoger Ebert
Movies like The Syrian Bride are not overtly political, but nibble around the edges, engaging our tendency to take a big political position and then undermine it with humanitarian exceptions. Read full review
75
San Francisco ChronicleRuthe Stein
By focusing on one family's dilemma, the movie brings home the messy Middle Eastern situation in a way easier to relate to than the headlines and opinion pieces. Read full review
75
Philadelphia InquirerCarrie Rickey
A keen observational seriocomedy, The Syrian Bride, like "Paradise Now," suggests that all residents of the Middle East, no matter their faith or their nationality, are more alike than not. Read full review
70
The New York TimesStephen Holden
The film uses the situation to evoke a sense of the absurd, sometimes with dry, deadpan humor. Read full review
70
The Hollywood ReporterFrank Scheck
The Syrian Bride manages to entertain even as it both moves and amuses. Read full review
70
Washington PostDesson Thomson
On one hand, the movie is guilty of schematic arrangement...But at the same time, Israeli producer-director-writer Eran Riklis and Palestinian co-writer Suha Arraf use the device to reveal touching human complexity. Read full review
70
Chicago ReaderAndrea Gronvall
Director Eran Riklis entertains without sermonizing, though the story clearly identifies women as the region's best chance for peace. Read full review
67
Austin ChronicleMarjorie Baumgarten
While the film's depiction of bureaucratic frustrations and familial woe are universal, the characters themselves can be difficult to warm up to and often seem as arid as their surroundings. Read full review
63
Miami HeraldMarta Barber
This Israeli film gives us an honest look at situations we never see in the news. It may have too many flaws to be a good film, but for its content, it is a winner. Read full review
60
VarietyLeslie Felperin
Ambitious screenplay by helmer Eran Riklis (best known outside Israel for "Cup Final") and former journalist Suha Arraf puts plenty of human flesh on its characters, who span the religious and cultural spectrum of Golan Heights dwellers. Read full review
60
Village VoiceJ. Hoberman
The Syrian Bride has no particular visual style, but it exudes affection, for its characters and their culture as well as the unprepossessing beauty of the scrubby terrain that holds them in thrall. Like all wedding films, it's essentially a comedy, albeit a sad one. Read full review
50
The A.V. ClubTasha Robinson
Ultimately, The Syrian Bride becomes an overtly political movie, but with all its loose threads and random directions, it feels more like the pilot for an unmade miniseries. Read full review
40
Film ThreatPhil Hall
A strangely inert affair. The stories devolve into one-dimensional squabbling and too many loose threads flap around the edges. Read full review
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