Just Like a Woman (2012)

Two women get on the highway heading to Santa Fe. Marilyn dreams of winning a contest held by a famous belly dancing company, while her friend, Mona, has a secret: she's a fugitive from justice - accused of her mother-in-law's death.

Director:

Rachid Bouchareb

Writers:

Joelle Touma, Marion Doussot

Stars:

Sienna Miller, Golshifteh Farahani, Bahar Soomekh

2 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Sienna Miller	...	Marilyn
Golshifteh Farahani	...	Mona
Bahar Soomekh	...	Soha
Tim Guinee	...	George
Roschdy Zem	...	Mourad
Chafia Boudraa	...	La mère de Mourad
Richard Jose	...	Ezhno
Jesse Bob Harper	...	Harvey (as Jesse Harper)
Sayed Badreya	...	Tarek
Usman Ally	...	Ousman
Doug James	...	George's Father
Deanna Dunagan	...	George's Mother
Michael Ehlers	...	Instructor / Peter
Aaron Walters	...	Suspect
Loren Lazerine	...	Ron

Storyline

Mona (Golshifteh Farahani), 26, an immigrant from North Africa, runs her in-laws' mini market in Chicago. She's married to Mourad, a man who can't stand up to his authoritarian mother. Mona is harassed by her mother-in-law because after five years of marriage, she hasn't been able to get pregnant, something that's considered a shame and a taboo in her culture. Marilyn (Sienna Miller), 29, is a receptionist at a computer repair company. Her marriage with Harvey is on the ropes. The only thing in her life that makes her happy is her belly dance class, a passion shared by Mona. Dancing at family gatherings lifts her spirits up and makes her forget the misery of her daily life. Marilyn shops at Mona's mini-market. They've become friends. One morning, Mona's mother-in-law is found dead in her bed. Mona realizes that she mixed the wrong dose while preparing her medicine. Realizing that she might be accused of murder, Mona runs away and flees Chicago by bus. Marilyn loses her job because of ...

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Plot Keywords:

belly dancing | woman | port a potty | mobile home | sleeping in a tent | 

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Taglines:

two friends - one journey - no limits

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Genres:

Drama

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for language and a scene of sexuality

Details

Country:

UK USA France

Language:

English

Release Date:

5 July 2013 (USA)

Also Known As:

Come una donna

Filming Locations:

Hollis, Oklahoma, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Taghit llc, The Doha Film Institute, Cohen Media Group

Technical Specs

Runtime:

87 min

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Goofs

At the 36:35 mark, as Mona is sleeping leaning on the passenger door of the car, in the passenger side mirror can be seen the arm of a crew member in the back seat wearing a white t-shirt.

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Soundtracks

Cool Desert Dance
Written by Roger Abaji & Claude Sacre
Courtesy of K Musik & Kosinus

User Reviews

Keep moving

Not sure why Rachid Bouchareb would make such a movie. The guy's been involved in some heavy-duty historical projects that have been very well-received in the past.

Why, Rachid, why?

For some reason, all his movie magic goes right out the door in this uninspiring and impotent road movie featuring a Golshifteh Farahani, in her usual affected demeanor (deep, slow and tragic voice, and the big dark eyes that never seem to blink) entirely devoid of any charisma, a Siena Miller who's trying to save the scenes on her own, and some of the worse performances (lines are spoken artificially and thoughtlessly) from just about everyone. The fact that Bouchareb would hire a French actor like Roshdy Zem (who's otherwise a great actor) is evidence that somebody either lost a bet or had to repay a past favor. Zem is awkward speaking in English and his performance is none the better for it.

Farahani was magical and arresting in The Patience Stone. She had a lot of presence when she shared the screen with Di Caprio.

Her performance is a fail in Just like a Woman, as is Bouchareb's directing.

Nothing to see here, keep moving, folks.