- Advisory:
- NC16. Some Coarse Language.
- Directed by:
- Mira Shaib
- Cast:
- Diamand Abou Abboud, Betty Taoutel, Bilal Al Hamwi, Shaden Fakih
- Year:
- 2024
- Duration:
- 1hr 32mins
- Language:
- Arabic
- Subtitles:
- English
-Opens: 15 Aug-
"Many Lebanese of my generation, especially women, have to go through the same hurdles everyday. So does Arzé, the heroine of my film. Arzé is a symbol, not only of the working-class woman, but also of my divided nation that has been oscillating on a cliff, about to fall into and drown in an ocean of sectarianism–again!" -Mira Shaib, Director of Arzé.
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Arzé, a single mother, is determined to buy her son a used scooter so he can help her deliver the mouth-watering pies she bakes, her only source of income. To make this happen, she steals and pawns her sister's bracelet–which may or may not have been a good idea.
But alas, the scooter is stolen! And when the police are useless–it’s Lebanon after all–Arzé takes matters into her own hands and drags her reluctant son all over Beirut in search of the missing scooter.
Arzé and her son quickly find themselves embroiled in a long journey full of twists and turns as they navigate the sectarianism and chaos of Beirut. To blend in with each neighborhood they visit, Arzé gets creative and puts on a whole disguise. She's a chameleon, changing her accent, donning a hijab or a Christian cross, and even giving Kinan a new name.
She’ll do anything to find the scooter. The quest is long and frustrating. As tensions rise and family secrets are revealed, finding the scooter is atstake and so is the unity of Arzé’s family.