Film review: Monsieur Ibrahim

Arguably, the best thing about "Hidalgo" was seeing Omar Sharif again. That otherwise sketchy film sorely needed the magnetic presence of the heretofore retired 71-year-old actor.

Sharif performs similar movie magic with "Monsieur Ibrahim," a too familiar coming-of-age story with a few interesting cultural insights. But refreshingly, this film gives him considerably more screen time.

As you might expect, that alone makes this a better film. Thanks to Sharif's performance, this French-language import is made quite watchable.

He stars as the title character, Ibrahim Demirdji, the owner of a small deli in Paris, circa the early 1960s. He's become something of a father figure to Moses Schmitt (Pierre Boulanger), a 16-year-old Jewish boy who feels that he's been neglected by his biological father (Gilbert Melki).

As it turns out, when Moses' parents split, his mother took their other son with her. That has left Moses in the unenviable position of being cook and caretaker for his depressed dad. So the kind-hearted shopkeeper Ibrahim takes the inquisitive teen, whom he nicknames Momo, under his wing. The boy also receives an education in Ibrahim's particular cultural and religious beliefs. (The movie's full title — at least in its home country — is "Monsieur Ibrahim and the Flowers of the Koran.")

These latter scenes are among the film's best moments. Up to that point, the film is cluttered with go-nowhere moments, and some that are in questionable taste, such as a painfully clichd scene in which the teen becomes a man by being with a prostitute.

Also, it's clear by his enthusiastic performance that this is a project close to Sharif's heart. Though it's being released locally after "Hidalgo," this was made first and was actually the reason Sharif came out of his self-imposed retirement.

Surprisingly, newcomer Boulanger does hold his own with the veteran actor, and the friendship that develops between their characters is very believable.

"Monsieur Ibrahim" is rated R for use of some crude slang and some vulgar humor (relating to bodily functions), brief simulated sex, use of ethnic slurs and mild profanity, brief partial female nudity, and violence (a brief scuffle). Running time: 95 minutes.

E-MAIL: jeff@desnews.com