We saw The Bookstore last night at the Guild Theater (part of the Portland International Film Festival.) At times the movie lacked focus, but it more than made up for it with its engaging characters and so we enjoyed it quite a bit, particularly because of Hend Sabri. She plays an aspiring singer who specializes in Asmahan covers and who is desperately trying to escape her husband’s bookstore for a better life.
Six-hundred Moroccan Jews from Morocco and around the world came together this week in the town of Rich to celebrate a hilloula (pilgrimage) at the tomb of Rabbi Itzhak Abessehra. Details here.
Morocco will play Tunisia in the finals of the African Nations Cup. Full coverage here.
I finally went to see House Of Sand And Fog last night and didn’t care for it much. In the book, you shift allegiances with each point of view and yet you can still feel for each character. In the movie you don’t. They all end up coming across as hateable, starting with Behrani. I like Ben Kingsley a lot, but in this movie Behrani was quite dry for a while then overly melodramatic at the end. Blah.
Tom Tomorrow riffs on the notion that Dean Can’t Win. See the cartoon here.
The Christian Science Monitor‘s David Sterritt lists his favorite movies this year. I’m embarrassed to say I’ve only seen three of them.