Cinema, Crisis, and the Plurality of Meaning: An Interview with Nadine Labaki

Cinema, Crisis, and the Plurality of Meaning:An Interview with Nadine Labaki Zeina Tarraf (bio) and Nadine Labaki (bio) When it comes to Lebanese cinema, few names elicit as much spirited contention and instant familiarity as nadine labaki's. While there are many Lebanese filmmakers who have established themselves as worthy auteurs, what originally set labaki apart from her counterparts was her ability to comfortably inhabit the confines of cultural cliques and film festival circuits and simultaneously resonate among a wider local audience. For the longest time, to the ordinary local viewer, nadine labaki was Lebanese cinema. Known initially as the director behind the salacious music videos for Lebanese pop star nancy ajram, labaki's celebrity status was solidified by the fact that she often stars in her own films. She also often appears in the works of other filmmakers who capitalize on her fame to make their films more Click for larger view View full resolution Nadine Labacki by Fares Sokhn [End Page 211] marketable. Most recently, she starred in mounia akel's widely successful Costa Brava, Lebanon (2021): inspired by the trash crisis in Lebanon in 2015, the film is about a family whose seemingly idyllic mountain retreat from the toxicity and social unrest of Beirut is disrupted by the construction of a garbage landfill right outside their home. Labaki herself has frequently used her fame to draw attention to social issues, more particularly the interlocked crises that are currently plaguing Lebanon. Recent examples include a video she produced starring Cate Blanchett that raises awareness about the infamous Beirut Blast, as well as a controversial parody music video encouraging people to plant their own produce as a way of curbing the effects of the currency collapse and the dramatic rise of market prices.1 These different projects evidence the wide scope of Labaki's unique celebrity status. The mass appeal of Labaki and her work alongside the legitimatization of her success by various national and global institutions—from her honorary doctorate from the American University of Beirut to her Academy Award nomination in 2019—showcase Labaki's striking ability to captivate a multitude of diverse audiences. Her directorial career is as varied as her audiences. Her first feature, Caramel (2007), gained prominence for its portrayal of female friendship and intimacy unfolding against the backdrop of a dynamic city. Set mostly in a beauty parlor, and with a vibrant cinematography interlaced with sensual and suggestive images of melting caramel (waxing sugar), the film follows a group of women who navigate different societal pressures. While most Lebanese cinema up to that point had been preoccupied with processing the memory of the fifteen-year civil war (1975–1990), Labaki's film was a refreshing delve into the ordinary and succeeded in "softening Lebanon's image" not only for international audiences whose perception of Lebanon was marred by a mediascape of war and violence but also for local and diasporic viewers enthusiastic to see alternative representations of themselves on the big screen.2 Similarly, her second feature, Where Do We Go Now? (2011), proved to be a highly entertaining piece that won the audience prize at the Toronto Film Festival and broke box-office records in Lebanon. In Where Do We Go Now?, Labaki did broach the subject of conflict, following the plight of a group of village women attempting to divert [End Page 212] the men in their lives away from civil strife. Nevertheless, her tone remained mostly lighthearted. Their comic antics range from hiring Russian prostitutes, to faking spiritual revelations, and ultimately lacing the men's food with hashish. Finally, Labaki's latest and perhaps most successful and most controversial film, Capernaum (2018), departs significantly from the framings that structured her previous features to shed light on the lives of destitute, marginalized, and undocumented communities in Lebanon. The film landed her multiple accolades including an Oscar nomination, a fifteen-minute standing ovation at Cannes, and the festival's coveted Jury Prize. While many have recognized the importance of Labaki's work, particularly for the conversations it generates about gender and its entanglement with national politics, and for her ability to "sustain a complex enunciative performance" through appealing powerfully to diverse...

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