Nadine Labaki’s (Caramel) bittersweet comedy about a group of Lebanese women trying to stop religious conflict from destroying their community picked up rave reviews at Cannes, where it screened in the Un Certain Regard category, and broke box office records in Lebanon.
It’s set in an unnamed Lebanese village inhabited by both Muslims and Christians, surrounded by land mines and reachable only via a bridge. As civil war engulfs the country, the women of the village plot to keep the menfolk in the dark; sabotaging the village radio, destroying the TV, and generally taking bizarre (and comedic) actions to ensure their community remains intact. But just how far will they go to prevent conflict from infiltrating their lives?
Labaki is a natural storyteller, and as in Caramel, part of the considerable charm of Where Do We Go Now? stems from her ability to create strong female characters who interact with each other using humour and provocation, in this very enjoyable film that’s sure to pick up good word-of-mouth from audiences.