THE STORY – Nino, an eternal optimist, and Yasmina, an impulsive pragmatist, are drawn together by a magnetic relationship. Struggling with universal choices of adult life in the extraordinary circumstances of a country constantly ravaged by war, they are confronted with an impossible choice between love and survival.
THE CAST – Mounia Akl, Hasan Akil, Julia Kassar, Camille Salameh, Tino Karam, Anthony Karam & Nadyn Chalhoub
THE TEAM – Cyril Aris (Director/Writer) & Bane Fakih (Writer)
THE RUNNING TIME – 109 Minutes
Two stars are crashing in Cyril Aris’ tender drama “A Sad and Beautiful World,” and they bring an equal amount of beauty and melancholy to the screen. As the film follows a reunited couple over several decades, their love story becomes intertwined with heartbreak on the streets of Lebanon, which is mired in civil war. The result is a moving, soulful story about love, loss, and seeking a brighter future, which this couple, and so many others, deserve. With exciting stylistic flourishes by Aris, he captures our attention and keeps us invested up until the very end. Making it all the better are two magnetic performances by leads Mounia Akl and Hasan Akil.
Nino and Yasmina were born just minutes apart in a hospital caught in the middle of a bombing. Rubble flies left and right as mothers scream in agony to protect their newborns – a scene captured with an impressive oner by cinematographer Joe Saade. If that doesn’t show what a sad and beautiful world it really is, Aris will convince you by the end. Fast-forward three decades, and the ever-optimistic Nino (Akil) runs his late parents’ restaurant, Chez Nino, which serves Italian food with a Lebanese twist. He dreams of making it the best eatery in all of Beirut, outfitted with expensive Italian marble and wood, but it all costs too much, and no one else seems to share his grand vision. Plus, the kitchen, with all its burners turned on and dirty dishes stacked on every counter, is a disaster, and no expensive materials can mask an underpaid and overworked environment. En route to a date with a woman he swears is “the one,” the stars collide in an unfortunate way for Nino and Yasmina (Akl) – by having him crash into her mother’s business.
Aris sets up a classic, breezy rom-com with their reintroduction, which will easily have audiences rooting for this couple. Yasmina, always on the phone for her consulting job, is initially annoyed by Nino’s upbeat, silly demeanor, especially his nonchalant attitude toward the damage he caused. But, at the same time, she’s charmed by his can-do spirit and incessant flirting. As we dive deeper into the story, Aris reveals that Nino and Yasmina have been bonded since childhood, attending primary school together and dealing with difficult situations at home (her parents always argue, while his parents died when he was young). As children, their puppy dog love may not have been taken seriously. Still, it’s clear that those feelings were very real and they’ve carried them to the present moment, much like Nora and Hae Sung’s relationship in Celine Song’s decades-spanning romance “Past Lives.”
The reason why it’s so easy to believe their cosmic fate romance is because of Akil and Akl’s undeniable chemistry with each other. They’re opposites in every way – every smile on Nino’s face elicits an eyeroll or “idiot” remark from Yasmina – and yet they go together like creamy hummus and warm pita. The warmth that they share as they embrace will easily put a smile on anyone’s face. Even as Yasmina, who has seen the downside of love with her parents’ divorce, tries to distance herself from him, Nino’s drive to sweep her off her feet and head to a paradisical island – a haven he’s held onto since childhood relating to his parents – you wish you could do anything in your power to make it reality for them. Even though the film belongs to them, there are also some great supporting performances from hard-ass chef and friend Chafic (Tino Karam), who will literally start a fight with anyone who suggests his dishes need a little extra seasoning, and his exasperated wife, Leila (Nadyn Chalhoub). Aris and Bane Fakih’s screenplay also deserves a shoutout for bringing such a swelling romance to the screen in a non-cliched way, as well as the director’s use of flashy stylistic choices (taking notes from Wong Kar-wai with a slow shutter effect as they’re running through the streets like two teenagers in love).
While the first half of the film is all about the beautiful things in the world, the second half is considerably colder, darker, and more serious. Several years have passed, and it’s becoming clear that Nino, Yasmina, and their daughter Amal can no longer call Lebanon home. Bombings, financial crisis, and chaos on the streets loom in the background, and that stress has penetrated their home and relationship as well. Yasmina, always the pragmatic one, is ready to accept a work transfer to Dubai; Nino, still hanging onto what once was, isn’t ready to let it all go. By spotlighting the real hardships of his country, Aris elevates this film beyond just these two and prompts viewers to consider the lost potential, broken dreams, and shattered safety that violence has wrought. Even though much of Nino and Yasmina’s storyline gets to be repetitive and slightly muddled in this section, Aris can reinvigorate it with a satisfying amount of hope toward the end.
It’s no wonder why “A Sad and Beautiful World” was Lebanon’s official selection for the Academy Awards’ Best International Feature Film category in 2025. Its gentle but profound love story transcends language and borders, made all the more powerful by Akil and Akl’s performances. The world is unfair in many ways, and so many people have lost so much, but this film reminds us that having love in one’s life makes the difficult moments all the more bearable.
