Tag Archive for: Lebanese movies

Lebanese movies and drama

By: Heba Arafat

Despite the challenges Lebanese people face as a result of the country’s issues due to the different ethnicities and origins of its inhabitants, they are well-known for their passion and love of life. Therefore, Lebanon is among the middle eastern countries with a great reputation regarding artistic production, in which they represent their love of life or their struggles. Among them is the production of great movies that are well-known not only in the Arab world but internationally. The narration of real-life issues or events that people encounter is undoubtedly one of the most fascinating aspects of a movie that gives it a great taste, which is what the majority of the following movies present that narrates different stories. In the following article, we present to you a selection of the best Lebanese movies. Don’t miss out!



 Top 10 Lebanese movies

  1. West Beirut



This Lebanese movie narrates the story of the high school student Tarek, who is fascinated by the thought of not having to attend school because of the broke out of the civil war in 1975. Instead, he records what is happening around him in 8 films. It narrates the chaos as well as the struggle of the Lebanese people presented in Tarek’s family. For people who like dramatic movies that present real events, this one is your best choice.

2.      Under the bombs



Under the Bombs is a Lebanese movie that narrates some events that took place in Lebanon during the war in 2006. The plot revolves around a mother, Zeina, who is looking for her son, who was sent to Lebanon to spare him the agony of seeing his parents split up. It is a dark comedy road movie that depicts the destruction and tragic events during the war.

3.      Capernaum



Capernaum is a dramatic Lebanese movie that was nominated to win the oscar. The movie, which was directed by the famous Nadine Labaki, tells the story of Zaid Al-Rifai, a 12-year-old Syrian refugee boy who is suing his parents for bringing him to this world and for neglecting him. The movie describes the tough life and struggles that homeless and poor children go through as presented in Zain while serving a 5-year prison sentence for a violent crime he commit.

4.      Ghadi



This Lebanese movie revolves around the struggle of a special needs boy that tries to prove himself and his abilities in society. It presents a traditional way of thinking that society has for people with special needs, then the same illness is repeated with his young son, who found in his father the best support for the view of society and the irony of his schoolmates.

 5.      Very big Shot



Very Big Shot is a dark comedy, social and adventurous Lebanese movie that tells the story of three drug dealers that run a pizza shop, as they call it in the movie, to make pizza and deliver it to homes, with the additional service of distributing cocaine anesthetic to some trusted customers.  The story continues to tell about their trials to sell drugs.

6.      The insult



The insult/ Case 23 is a Lebanese legal drama movie directed by Ziad Douei and co-written by Doueiri and Joelle Touma in 2017. Yasser (Kamel El Basha), a Palestinian refugee in Lebanon, is a foreman for a construction company, that is working in Tony’s neighborhood. Tony is a Christian man that fought with Yasser over a problem with the water pipes that lead to them standing before the court which escalates into a nationwide controversy.

7.      Caramel



Caramel is a romantic comedy Lebanese movie, directed by the famous Nadine Labaki in 2007, that goes around the lives of 5 Lebanese women working in a Salon in Beirut. The plot tells their stories in search of happiness and freedom of their beliefs. The movie uses day-to-day conversations that revolve around love, sex, man and marriage, fear of old age, society’s view of the girl, and women’s fear of the unknown future.

8.      Tramontane



Tramontane( French name ) is a Lebanese movie that embodies the character of Rabi, a young man living in a small village in Lebanon. Rabi is shocked when he goes to extract a passport to find out his identity, which he holds throughout his life, is fake. The story of the movie is a dramatic one that goes around the journey of searching for his birth records, origins, true identity, and his true self. Not only that, but it also presents different feelings as the feeling of being lost in your own place. The movie was directed by Vatche Boulghouejian in 2016 but still is one of the most-watched Lebanese movies.

9.      Where do we go now?



A Lebanese documentary movie that embodies the story of a small village in Lebanon, in which inhabitants lived peacefully until some incidents lead to tensions between Muslims and Christians. The movie goes around the women of the village that decided to put plans to end those tensions to live peacefully in this village. Do they succeed? Does it get worse? It is a great movie that presents the conflict between sectarians and religious beliefs that leads to division between people, specifically Lebanese people.

10.  Little wars



One of the oldest dramatic Lebanese movies that present the story of the Lebanese war in 1875. It is directed by Maroun Baghdadi in 1982. It is considered one of the movies that present the civil war through 3 main characters. Talal, who becomes a war chief, Thoraya, who is in love with Talal and tries to help him and Nabil, a photojournalist when in reality he is a drug dealer.