Alex and Leo

Inspired by the bizarre world she witnessed around her while growing up in a wealthy village in war-torn Lebanon, Rozy Sarkis's documentary Image Matters (2012) explores the country's culture of cosmetic surgery. The film focuses in particular on popular Lebanese soap opera actress Marinelle's quest to resist the effects of aging by transforming her face. As she struggles with the dangers of the operation and the complications that ensue, the background features a hub of female family members, each riddled with their own anxieties about their appearance. This family drama plays out against a broader backdrop of considerable social upheaval and instability. —Anonymous