Peace by Chocolate

It's a cross-cultural immigration drama set in 2016 in Antigonish, Nova Scotia. It follows a Syrian refugee family landing in a town of 4,000 in rural Nova Scotia and shows the internal family struggles as well as cross-cultural experiences in the community.

Tareq Hadhad (Ayham Abou Ammar) is the son who immigrates to Canada first. He was a Syrian medical student before his family fled to Lebanon because of the war. Tareq speaks good English. The rest of the family speaks no English. His father, Issam (Hatem Ali), had run a specialty chocolate factory with 50 employees before the war, but the factory was bombed in 2012. Issam and Shahnaz (Yara Sabri), Tareq's mother, are soon to follow. Tareq's sister, Alaa (Najlaa Al Khamri), cannot come for a while because her husband has stayed in Syria. After her husband is killed in the war, Alaa also joins the family in Antigonish.

The film follows some of the acculturation issues (snow and cold in winter) and the sponsorship of the family by a local church, especially an accountant named Frank (Mark Camacho). Tareq desperately wants to get into a Canadian medical school against his father's wishes. His father feels illiterate if his son does not stay close to the family. From a small beginning, we see the Peace by Chocolate business grow with a settled outcome by the end.

The movie was better than I expected. At a cynical level, it's a 90-minute advertisement for Peace by Chocolate and the Sobey's grocery chain that became an early supporter. (And the theater where I watched it sold Peace by Chocolate bars at the refreshment counter.) Some critics have also complained about the positive references to the Liberal Party's immigration policy and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.

But the film also shows the tension between a father loyal to Syrian culture and a son wanting to pursue an independent future. It's also clear that not all Antigonish residents welcomed the newcomers. The film could have been more open about the latter issue and perhaps revealed more negative scenes of the cross-cultural experience. But it clearly is aimed at a family-friendly audience and portrays an ultimately positive immigration experience. It's a good mixture of humor and tension.

Absolutely beautiful way to tell such a compelling and heart warming story. It's quite literally what the Canadian dream is. Acting was amazing and production/photography were so well done. 10/10 would/will watch again.

I was somewhat familiar with the story from news reports and was interested in seeing it, but skeptical of the quality as Canadian movies tend to be somewhat cringe-worthy.

It was an all-round pleasant movie with a heart-warming tale of strangers in a strange (and cold) land. The end (not a spoiler, as one expects it from movies based on true events) was very nice, showing footage of the real people involved.

I totally recommend this film.

I was very much looking forward to watching the movie. This family's story is absolutely fantastic, and I definitely encourage you to read about their story or to watch the movie if you prefer. Unfortunately, however, I found the movie way too repetitive, focusing throughout most of it on the opposite expectations from the son and his father. It felt like I watched 4 or 5 times a very similar scene about their opposite personal wishes (which very negatively affects my rating). I believe the movie could have made me feel a lot more engaged by including more diversity of scenes, for instance about many others impacts of their integration in Canada and in the Nova Scotia town instead.

This movie... It doesn't only makes my day because I'm a Syrian and loved the way these people accomplished something and gave me hope and a smile. It's also that Syrian soul it has, working tirelessly for your dreams but also being their for your family.

RIP Hatem Ali, you will be missed.