The Secret of the Grain

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The Secret of the Grain

2008

2h 31m

Drama

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Popcornmeter

92%

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52 Reviews

76%

Popcornmeter

5,000+ Ratings

As the shipyard where a Tunisian immigrant works is winding down, Slimane plans to us his redundancy to open a couscous restaurant, with the main dish cooked by his ex-wife Souad, who is renowned among family and friends for the quality of her food. His daughter Rym supports him and she uses her wiles to help him but he must also win over the local businessmen and bureaucrats to raise funds and gain planning permission.

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Critics Consensus

A complex portrait of an immigrant family, The Secret of the Grain is a sprawling, intimate film with many fine performances.

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Shubhra Gupta

The Indian Express

04/30/2019

[Abdel] Kechiche knows his subject and the film reflects the warmth and understanding with which he views it, though it is inordinately long at 2 hrs and 30 minutes.

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Elisabeth Lequeret

Film Comment Magazine

11/14/2013

Kechiche may subscribe to Renoir's "Everyone has his reasons," but here he shoots the action with a nervous tension that's more evocative of Pialat.

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Lisa Kennedy

Denver Post

07/10/2009

3.5/4

Never sagging, it unfolds over 2 1/2 hours. Nothing is overexplained. Indeed, it takes us time to suss out Slimane's various familial relationships.

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Kaleem Aftab

The List

11/04/2018

4/5

This depiction of Arab family life with all its attendant problems shares with comparable drama La Haine an empathy for immigrants.

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Annie Wagner

The Stranger (Seattle, WA)

08/21/2017

Almost certainly the best movie in SIFF 2008, Abdellatif Kechiche's follow-up to Games of Love & Chance burrows into a tight-knit Tunisian immigrant community in a small port town in the south of France.

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Dennis Schwartz

Dennis Schwartz Movie Reviews

04/27/2011

A-

A beautifully painted portrait of everyday Arab immigrant life in France among a large dysfunctional family.

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Siriporn P

@Malee Jul 25

Too much rambling. Too prolongated. A bit boring. If this was made shorter, i.e. 1:30hrs instead of 2:30, it should be more interesting.

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06/22/2015

This was certainly a powerful story of life's purpose, meaning, and the result that random coincidences can have on it. Unfortunately, it was way too long but the conclusion was well executed.

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Emilio T

@MilloTPue 07/26/2014

I like the characters and feel sympathy and comprehension for them, but that is not enough to make a movie.

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01/03/2014

God, the first half is really boring and it has this over-complicated knot. Thank God the second half is more interesting and mind-provoking. But I think it's overuse the short-range shots and the cinematography & style aren't fresh and interesting. The cinematography just REALLY plain. And it's not really complex, and the actors ability are good. Hafsia Herzi is really excellent while Habib Boufares makes me yawning.

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01/27/2013

Neo-realist. Beautiful. Profound. And with the most life like performances I've ever seem captured on film. Modern classic. Essential viewing. One of the best films of the 21st century.

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12/08/2012

Exquisite, provocative, gorgeous, subtle...

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Abdel Kechiche

Director

Habib Boufares

Slimane Beiji

Hafsia Herzi

Rym

Farida Benkhetache

Karima

Abdelhamid Aktouche

Hamid

Bouraouïa Marzouk

Souad

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84%

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Synopsis

As the shipyard where a Tunisian immigrant works is winding down, Slimane plans to us his redundancy to open a couscous restaurant, with the main dish cooked by his ex-wife Souad, who is renowned among family and friends for the quality of her food. His daughter Rym supports him and she uses her wiles to help him but he must also win over the local businessmen and bureaucrats to raise funds and gain planning permission.

Director: Abdel Kechiche
Producer: Claude Berri
Screenwriter: Abdel Kechiche
Distributor: IFC Films
Production Co: Hirsch Productions, Pathé Renn Productions, France 2 Cinéma
Genre: Drama
Original Language: French (France)
Release Date (Theaters): Dec 24, 2008, Limited
Release Date (Streaming): May 23, 2017
Runtime: 2h 31m

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