Masquerades Film Analysis

The movie “Masquerades” gives a different, more comical perspective to the notion of Arab love and marriage. The main character of the movie, Mounir, struggles to find a suitable husband for his sister who suffers from Narcolepsy. Mounir gets himself and his family into a jam when the town begins to think Rym, his sister, has found a fiance in a rich,famous foreign man. The story follows Mounir and his family as they struggle to keep the secret of the fake suitor and the movie ends with Rym running away with her sweetheart/husband of 4 years. The concept of matchmaking is explored in a short documentary, following a professional matchmaker; showing how she does business and the outcomes of her matches. The documentary begins by introducing Um Sultan, a professional matchmaker, and her family with a brief history. The video then has a section showing how Um Sultan works with her clients and what questions she asks each prospective bride/groom. Um Sultan is shown speaking at a …show more content…
The movie was produced by Arab filmmakers mitigating any bias from outside influences. It also does not make any statements about Arab life in general. The Matchmaker video was unbiased because it introduced the topic in a professional way and included perspectives of several parties including those not in arranged marriages. The only real source of bias that this film is associated with is the bias of its viewers; those not accustomed to the practice of arranged marriages may not interpret the subject as it is meant to be seen. Also, Um Sultan is obviously partial to arranged marriages rather than non-arranged because her livelihood relies on people using her services. Other than these small sources of bias, the documentary was produced by a very credible source, Al-Jazeera Network, which did not introduce any bias in the way it was