Monsieur Ibrahim (2003)

In Paris, a Turkish shop owner befriends a Jewish boy in his mid-teens.

Director:

François Dupeyron

Writers:

François Dupeyron, Eric-Emmanuel Schmitt (novel)

Stars:

Omar Sharif, Pierre Boulanger, Gilbert Melki

Nominated for 1 Golden Globe. Another 5 wins & 7 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Omar Sharif	...	Monsieur Ibrahim Deneji
Pierre Boulanger	...	Moses 'Momo' Schmitt
Gilbert Melki	...	Le père de 'Momo'
Isabelle Renauld	...	La mère de 'Momo'
Lola Naymark	...	Myriam
Anne Suarez	...	Sylvie
Mata Gabin	...	Fatou
Céline Samie	...	Eva
Isabelle Adjani	...	La star
Guillaume Gallienne	...	Le vendeur voiture
Guillaume Rannou	...	Le realisateur
Manuel Le Lièvre	...	Le moniteur auto-école (as Manuel Lelièvre)
Daniel Znyk	...	Le gendarme
Françoise Armelle	...	La maitresse d'école
Sylvie Herbert	...	L'eximinateur

Storyline

In a street called Blue in a very poor neighborhood in Paris, Monsieur Ibrahim is an old Muslim Turkish owner of a small market. He becomes friend of the teenager Jewish Moises, tenderly nicknamed Momo, who lives with his father in a small apartment on the other side of the street. Monsieur Ibrahim gives paternal love and teaches the knowledge of the Qur'an to the boy, receiving in return love and respect.

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Plot Keywords:

turkish | love | jewish | boy | friend | 

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for some sexual content

Details

Official Sites:

Official site [Germany] Official site [Italy]

Country:

France

Language:

French Turkish

Release Date:

9 April 2004 (USA)

Also Known As:

Monsieur Ibrahim

Filming Locations:

Turkey

Box Office

Opening Weekend:

$531,320 (France), 19 September 2003

Opening Weekend USA:

$65,696, 16 February 2004, Limited Release

Gross USA:

$2,823,837, 1 August 2004

Company Credits

Production Co:

ARP Sélection, France 3 Cinéma

Technical Specs

Runtime:

94 min

Sound Mix:

DTS Dolby Digital EX

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Omar Sharif, who plays a turkish man, is not turkish in real life and couldn't speak turkish in the movie. Some of the words were made up and are not a part of the turkish language.

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Quotes

Momo: Do you think I'm good-looking?
Monsieur Ibrahim: [chuckles] You're very good-looking.
Momo: Will I be good-looking enough to attract girls without paying?
Monsieur Ibrahim: In a few years, they'll pay for you.
Momo: It's not great for now.
Monsieur Ibrahim: Of course not. See how you go about it? You stare as if to say, "See how good-looking I am." And so they just laugh. You have to look at them as if to say, "I've never seen such beauty before."

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Connections

Featured in The 61st Annual Golden Globe Awards (2004)

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Soundtracks

Waltz
from "Coppélia"
Written by Léo Delibes

User Reviews

Witty, melancholic, funny, full of love and life

Seldom do I buy the book because I saw the movie. I did this time around and the book is even better than the movie albeit a bit too short, although throughout the book, you will always see Omar Sharif as Ibrahim.

I went to see this without knowing too much about it and from the very beginning it succeeded in drawing me right into Rue Bleu, it was as if I could almost smell it, feel it, touch it. Why? Because we care for the characters, we feel with them, through them. Omar Sharif is just stellar as Monsieur Ibrahim and carries the story with such an ease that it is a delight to watch.

One of the most powerful scenes for me was when Ibrahim confronts Momo about the stealing. There are more but I do not want to spoil it for you. "Ibrahim" is an emotional journey that you have to be willing to make. If you do you will be well rewarded.

Highly recommendable. 9/10