Bonjour Monsieur Shlomi

Released Apr 2, 2003

1h 38m

Comedy

Drama

List

71%

Tomatometer

31 Reviews

92%

Audience Score

500+ Ratings

Sixteen-year-old Shlomi Bar-Dayan (Oshri Cohen) lives in Israel with his overprotective mother and seriously ill grandfather. Doing poorly in school, he is forced by the principal to take a test. The results reveal that Shlomi is a math genius. The principal wants to enroll Shlomi in a new school, but his family wants him to stay at home. With help from his girlfriend, Tehila (Rotem Zisman), Shlomi must decide whether to leave for school or stay and take care of his family.

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Bruce Westbrook

Houston Chronicle

Zarhin has a fine ear for dialogue with refreshing directness and loud rings of truth, but he also knows when to let looks speak volumes.

Rated: 3/4

Dec 3, 2004

Full Review

Lisa Kennedy

Denver Post

Like its protagonist, Bonjour Monsieur Shlomi is slow to reveal its charms.

Rated: 2.5/4

Dec 3, 2004

Full Review

Ty Burr

Boston Globe

Where writer-director Zarhin excels is in offhanded human comedy -- in the craziness that comes with being a teenager in a house full of lunatics to whom you're related.

Rated: 3/4

Nov 28, 2004

Full Review

Robert Denerstein

Denver Rocky Mountain News

The story in director Shemi Zarhin's film proves predictable and a little too delighted with its own quirkiness.

Rated: C+

Dec 3, 2004

Full Review

Chris Hewitt

St. Paul Pioneer Press

What it's really about is a subject anyone who has ever been an adolescent can relate to: the period when you start to take responsibility for what kind of person you are and what kind of life you're going to have.

Rated: 2.5/4

Oct 7, 2004

Full Review

Marta Barber

Miami Herald

Nothing in it -- plot, dialogue or character development -- reaches today's standards of filmmaking.

Rated: 1/4

Oct 1, 2004

Full Review

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Audience Member

I thought it was going to be funny. It was, somewhat,but it was more touching than anything. Well worth watching.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

02/25/23

Full Review

Audience Member

A heartfelt Israeli film about a unrecognized gifted child and his role in a less than perfect family. Message is universal.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

02/18/23

Full Review

Audience Member

Absolutely charming.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

02/03/23

Full Review

Audience Member

Bonjour Monsieur Shlomi is a tender, sweet coming of age story about a boy, ignored by his classmates, taken for granted by his family, and dismissed by his teachers. The only person who sees him for who he is is his paternal grandfather, but Grandpa has bouts of lunacy that make that recognition of little value. Terrific character development drives this story and there were moments of subtle humor that kept the viewer engaged. When Shlomi (Oshri Cohen) comes to the attention of his school headmaster (Yigal Naor) and falls in love the the girl next door, Rona (Aya Steinovits), his luck and his life begin to change. This is not your typical teenage sex romp. It is a talented young kid finding out that his life has infinite possibilities that he never believed would be available to him. It is about the people around him learning new respect for the kid who seemed invisible. And it is about growing up, no matter how old you are. One minor quibble with a dream sequence that was inserted that seemed out of place with the rest of the film kept this from the top rating, but a really good, heartwarming story.

Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars

01/31/23

Full Review

Audience Member

Good theme and an excellent soundtrack. Thought provoking philosophical pearls in the 95,mins

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

02/14/23

Full Review

Audience Member

This movie has heart. It's funny and at times poetic, without ever overdoing the emotion or drama. A movie to fall in love with without being able to quite explain why. Also, anyone who's ever seen a Mediterranean household will find the family dialogues hilarious and true to life.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

02/13/23

Full Review

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Shemi Zarhin

Director

Oshri Cohen

Shlomi Bar-Dayan

Arieh Elias

Grandfather Bar-Dayan

Esti Zakhem

Ruhama Bar-Dayan

Aya Koren

Rona

Yigal Naor

Aviho, the headmaster

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Synopsis

Sixteen-year-old Shlomi Bar-Dayan (Oshri Cohen) lives in Israel with his overprotective mother and seriously ill grandfather. Doing poorly in school, he is forced by the principal to take a test. The results reveal that Shlomi is a math genius. The principal wants to enroll Shlomi in a new school, but his family wants him to stay at home. With help from his girlfriend, Tehila (Rotem Zisman), Shlomi must decide whether to leave for school or stay and take care of his family.

Director: Shemi Zarhin
Producer: Eitan Evan
Screenwriter: Shemi Zarhin
Distributor: Strand Releasing
Genre: Comedy, Drama
Original Language: Hebrew
Release Date (Theaters): Apr 2, 2003, Original
Release Date (Streaming): Feb 13, 2017
Box Office (Gross USA): $54.3K
Runtime: 1h 38m
Sound Mix: Dolby SR
Aspect Ratio: Flat (1.85:1)

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