Monsieur Ibrahim

Los Angeles Times Kevin Thomas

Surely there is room in the movies for a small film with an unabashed, even old-fashioned but timeless humanist spirit -- and a triumphant portrayal by a veteran star that is likely to be regarded as one of the year's best.

Chicago Tribune Michael Wilmington

Most movingly, Monsieur Ibrahim takes a provocative subject -- friendship and love between a Jew and a Muslim -- and makes it seem natural and wondrous.

Philadelphia Inquirer Steven Rea

Tender but never sappy, Monsieur Ibrahim brings two people of vastly different age and background together in ways that are touching, and telling. It's a small, glowing gem.

Baltimore Sun Chris Kaltenbach

Monsieur Ibrahim is about people interacting as people, not symbols (one reason, Sharif has said, he took the role was to help his grandchildren's generation understand that idea).

Portland Oregonian Marc Mohan

Warmhearted lesson in tolerance.

Seattle Post-Intelligencer William Arnold

A gracefully subtle, sweet-spirited French parable of the brotherhood of man that was nominated for a Golden Globe, won Omar Sharif a César Award for best actor and has been a surprise hit in Europe.

Washington Post Michael O'Sullivan

Contrary to expectation, it's neither a movie about religion nor the coming together of enemies. What it is, at heart, is a movie about love.

Washington Post Ann Hornaday

A movie suffused with a warm glow of nostalgia for times and music and movies gone by.

Chicago Sun-Times Roger Ebert

Its best scenes come as the characters are established and get to know one another. Sharif at 71 still has the fire in his eyes that we remember from "Lawrence of Arabia," and is still a handsome presence.

San Francisco Chronicle Ruthe Stein

Adapted from a French play but never seems stage- bound.

USA Today Mike Clark

The movie has a couple of surprises, including a major plot turn at the end that leads to a memorable resolution somewhere between happy and wistful.

Premiere Peter Debruge

With the careful timing and nuance of a master actor, Sharif turns a two-dimensional sketch into the film's most absorbing character.

New York Daily News Jami Bernard

Omar Sharif certainly doesn't disappoint in Monsieur Ibrahim. The casting alone promises something extraordinary.

New York Post V.A. Musetto

The script falters at the end, as the two reach the Turkish village where Ibrahim was raised. But the winning performances -- and killer '60s soundtrack -- save the day.

Entertainment Weekly Lisa Schwarzbaum

The movie is sometimes profound in its simple, optimistic message of friendship -- and sometimes it's plain simple.

The New York Times Dana Stevens

The two central performances help the lesson go down easily, and Mr. Duperyon's unassuming, slightly ragged realism gives the movie a sweet, lived-in charm. Mr. Sharif, grizzled and white-haired at 71, has lost none of the charisma that made him an international movie star in the 1960's, and Mr. Boulanger, in his first feature film, shows impressive self-assurance.

Village Voice Leslie Camhi

Unusual in its ambition to pose deep spiritual questions, but its enticing surfaces -- including the beautiful working girls and Isabelle Adjani's surprise cameo as a Bardot-esque starlet -- are the best thing about it.

The Hollywood Reporter Duane Byrge

Both an appealing coming-of-age yarn and, as Monsieur Ibrahim embraces his own mortality, a heartfelt coming-of-aging saga.

Variety Deborah Young

Unshaven and twinkling-eyed, Sharif is professionally light and entertaining in the title role.

TV Guide Ken Fox

Boulanger is completely captivating as the kind of kid Truffaut would have adored, but it's Sharif's show. Next to his portrayal of Yuri in "Dr. Zhivago", this may be role for which he'll be best remembered.

The Onion (A.V. Club) Keith Phipps

Adapting a novel by Eric-Emmanuel Schmitt, François Dupeyron uses handheld cameras and some jarring edits, but, prostitutes and all, this is storybook material: heartfelt, pleasant, cuddly, and a little too insubstantial to stick in the mind for long.

Chicago Reader Meredith Brody

Sentimental.

Austin Chronicle Steve Davis

The titular role of Monsieur Ibrahim is not a terribly taxing one, but Sharif effortlessly demonstrates that he still has the stuff that made him a star so many years ago – he exudes a charismatic appeal that is apparently timeless.

The Globe and Mail (Toronto) Liam Lacey

Among the lessons that Monsieur Ibrahim conveys to Moses, and the most appealing aspect of the film, is to delight in sensual pleasure.

Boston Globe Ty Burr

When Shirley MacLaine made this same movie, more or less, as "Madame Sousatzka," there was a whole lot of acting going on. Sharif brings us to Ibrahim with a modesty that oddly reminds you of why the actor is a legend.

Miami Herald Marta Barber

It is a treat to see Sharif back on the screen and Boulanger is a pleasure to watch. They make Monsieur Ibrahim better than it is.

ReelViews James Berardinelli

Agreeable enough motion picture, but not one that leaves any sort of lasting impression.

Dallas Observer Melissa Levine

By the end, Monsieur Ibrahim's determination to be lighthearted in the face of tragedy is a little wearying.

The New Republic Stanley Kauffmann

At least we have the chance to see Sharif again, with our memory of the sun behind him, even though this film is not much more than a sweetmeat--Turkish delight.

Christian Science Monitor David Sterritt

While the story is sentimental, heartfelt acting makes its impact less manipulative.

LA Weekly Ella Taylor

Excusez-moi, but I'd rather see Omar Sharif punching out croupiers in a casino than dispensing comfort and joy in this sugared-up tale.

Film Threat Phil Hall

Maybe someday an enterprising filmmaker will make a film about this forgotten chapter in Muslim-Jewish relations. It would be a lot more compelling and memorable than the nonsense in Monsieur Ibrahim.