Wax On, Wax Off

Try thinking of director Nadine Labaki’s Caramel as a Steel Magnolias for Middle Eastern sensibilities, only also set amid an ultraconservative, male-dominant Arab culture. Thankfully, inside a Lebanese hair salon, working Beirut women can dish unfiltered gossip without reproof, and partake in proprietress Layale’s (Labaki) candied hair-removal technique: She slaps...

By Phillip Valys

March 13, 2008

[
        {
          "name": "GPT - Billboard - Slot Inline - Content - Labeled - No Desktop",
          "component": "16971022",
          "insertPoint": "2",
          "requiredCountToDisplay": "2"
        },{
          "name": "Editor Picks",
          "component": "15769925",
          "insertPoint": "4",
          "requiredCountToDisplay": "1"
        },{
          "name": "Inline Links",
          "component": "16575154",
          "insertPoint": "8th",
          "startingPoint": 8,
          "requiredCountToDisplay": "7",
          "maxInsertions": 25
        },{
          "name": "GPT - Rectangle 2x - Slot Auto-select - Labeled",
          "component": "15782206",
          "insertPoint": "8th",
          "startingPoint": 8,
          "requiredCountToDisplay": "7",
          "maxInsertions": 25
        },{
          "name": "Inline Links",
          "component": "16575154",
          "insertPoint": "8th",
          "startingPoint": 12,
          "requiredCountToDisplay": "11",
          "maxInsertions": 25
        },{
          "name": "GPT - Leaderboard to Tower - Slot Auto-select - Labeled",
          "component": "15782207",
          "insertPoint": "8th",
          "startingPoint": 12,
          "requiredCountToDisplay": "11",
          "maxInsertions": 25
        }
      ]

Try thinking of director Nadine Labaki’s Caramel as a Steel Magnolias for Middle Eastern sensibilities, only also set amid an ultraconservative, male-dominant Arab culture. Thankfully, inside a Lebanese hair salon, working Beirut women can dish unfiltered gossip without reproof, and partake in proprietress Layale’s (Labaki) candied hair-removal technique: She slaps gobs of waxy caramel on backs and legs, aiming to restore hairless, feminine beauty to her shaggy clients.

Here, under the bell-shaped dryers, customers vent love woes: 50-something actress Jamale doggedly denies that she’s going through menopause, hairstylist Nisrine isn’t a virgin but fears her Muslim fiancée would break the engagement if he found out, and shampooist Rima finds herself smitten with a female salon client. Sample this sticky confectionary for yourself all week at Sunrise 11 Cinemas (4321 Pine Island Rd., Sunrise). Tickets run $6.50 to $8.75. Call 954-748-0333, or visit www.sunrisecinemas.com.
March 14-28, 2008

KEEP NEW TIMES FREE... Since we started New Times, it has been defined as the free, independent voice of South Florida, and we'd like to keep it that way. Your membership allows us to continue offering readers access to our incisive coverage of local news, food, and culture with no paywalls. You can support us by joining as a member for as little as $1.