While formulaic in structure, the film is actually quite lovely.
Comment
01/29/08
Caramel (2008)
92
%
Tomatometer
How does the Tomatometer work 
Reviews Counted:74
Fresh:68
Rotten:6
Average Rating:7.1/10
Consensus: Caramel is both an astute cultural study, and a charming comedic drama from a talented newcomer.
Theatrical Release:Feb 1, 2008 Limited
Box Office: $781,954
Synopsis: Warm and sweet, this Lebanese film lives up to its titular substance without ever being too sugary. Actress Nadine Labaki cowrote and directed CARAMEL, an ensemble comedy set in and around a Beirut... [More]
Starring: Nadine Labaki, Yasmine Al Masri, Joanna Moukarzel, Gisele Aouad
Director: Nadine Labaki
Get This Movie
Reviews for Caramel
A 34-year-old music-video director, Labaki shows promise with a smooth, artistic eye, although she succumbs to the Mel Gibson-like tendency to give herself the most closeups.
05/01/08
A delectable slice of life whose flavors are rarely available on these Western shores.
02/22/08
At its best, Caramel boasts a quietly engaging slice-of-slice casualness.
01/31/08
In a culture where female sexuality is problematic at best, how is a woman supposed to feed both body and heart? Through makeovers, support, and necessary lies, Caramel curtly answers.
02/08/08
Feminist issues that may be dangerous to tackle in the conservative Middle East are rendered silly by uneven performances and soap-opera overkill.
10/06/07
Labaki elicits expressive performances from a cast of amateurs, aided by Khalad Mouzanar's entrancing score and Yves Sehnaoui's lush cinematography.
03/28/08
Perceptive and poignant, Caramel observes the love lives of the establishment's owner, her employees and their customers.
03/28/08
There's a pleasant, easygoing charm to Caramel, largely stemming from Labaki's rare determination to depict Beirut as something other than a war-torn, slowly recovering battleground.
03/27/08
Everything that happens in this movie is predictable, and yet that's part of its modest charm.
02/01/08
A gooey, insubstantial confection, often sweet, occasionally cloying, sometimes sticky- -- in many respects about on a par with the likes of Beauty Shop.
02/01/08
A formulaic sisters-are-doing-it-for-themselves (and doing each other's hair) ensemble drama in the manner of 'Beauty Shop,' elevated by the novelty of its Lebanese locations and Arabic cast...
03/31/08
Director and principal performer Nadine Labaki juggles a series of romances but the love that shines through the most is her passion for her city of Beirut.
01/16/08
I were to seek out one of these mystical fictional salons, I'd book at the one in Caramel over those in Steel Magnolias or Beauty Shop.
02/01/08
Caramel is a warm, funny and compassionate movie that examines five women who are at very different stages in their lives, each one with a particular problem to work out.
03/02/08
One of those small films that give a glimpse into a culture that's both foreign and familiar. It's filled with real-life touches and small insights and wonderfully human characters, and the whole thing feels as real as crossing the street.
02/08/08
The kvetches of regulars at a cheery Beirut beauty salon couldn't be more familiar -- and that's the slender charm of Caramel, a Lebanese variation on sweetly soapy dramas about Women Who Bond With Wet Hair.
01/30/08
Top CriticGroundbreaking it is not. But it follows the familiar path cheerfully enough, and it paints a vivid, movie-friendly picture of a woman's life in Lebanon.
02/28/08
A Lebanese version of Steel Magnolias--a delightful valentine to women of a particular time and place.
01/23/08
Sihame Haddad breaks your heart as Rose, juggling perhaps her last shot at romance.
11/06/07
Latest News for Caramel
June 22, 2008:
Ritual and rebellion collide in this bittersweet confection casting a rare gaze upon the pleasures, sorrows, dreams and sexual desires of Arab women in the Middle East. 
More...
January 31, 2008:
Critics Consensus: Over Her Dead Body is DOA, Guess The Eye's & Strange Wilderness' Tomatometer!
This week at the movies, we've got creepy visions (The Eye, starring Jessica Alba), haunted romances (Over Her Dead Body, starring Paul Rudd and Eva Longoria Parker), woodland... More...
January 27, 2008:
Ritual and rebellion collide in this bittersweet confection casting a rare gaze upon the pleasures, sorrows, dreams and sexual desires of Arab women in the Middle East.
More...
January 19, 2008:
Trailer & Poster review
More...
RT On Current TV
What’s Hot On RT
Fresh Links
Featured
Wes Anderson on Fox
The director talks about puppetry perfection and his film, Fantastic Mr. Fox
Animated Oscar?
Hollywood.com ponders whether or not an animated film could win Best Picture.
TIME's Holiday Movie Preview
Richard Corliss previews the season's best offerings and hottest tickets.
Scenic Routes
The AV Club's Mike D'Angelo airs his beefs with Alfonso Cuaron's Children of Men.
Promos
Follow RT on Twitter
Get the latest Tomatometer updates on upcoming movies!
IGN RSS Feeds