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Flash Movie Review: Enemy
IT JUST TAKES A LITTLE empty feeling inside for a person to start envying someone else’s good fortune. I have seen it happen many times where a person cannot only envy but resent another individual who appears happy and content. There is a friend of mine who has a relative that acts this way. This relative will offer backhanded compliments that others can see are fueled by jealousy and resentment. Another thing they do is try to copy whatever my friend does, either in hair style or clothing. If my friend is wearing a new outfit at a family function, the relative will seek out and buy something similar; however she take pleasure it telling everyone how much it cost. In other words she wants everyone to know her outfit is more expensive and better quality. It is such a weird game to me, like anyone would care about which one was better or more expensive. The thing I find icky is when my friend tells me this relative showed up at a family dinner with her hair styled in the same manner as my friend’s style; based on what I have heard there is no way I would say she is paying a compliment to my friend. WISHING FOR SOMETHING HAS A different feeling for me than dreaming about it. When I wish for something it usually is a tangible thing like wishing for warmer weather or a winning lottery ticket. I have spent the majority of my life dreaming about a life I hoped I could attain one day. Dreams to me seem to be more goals oriented than wishes. Maybe what I am trying to say is dreams have more of a life altering affect. There is a difference when one says they wish they had a boyfriend compared to dreaming about being with a boyfriend. I hope this is an example; there are two sisters who do not get along well with each other. One sister got married early and started a family; the other one married later in life and did not have any children. As the two sisters grew older the one without children started to resent her sister. Where the one with kids took family trips, attended a variety of school functions and was married to a man who was climbing up in position at his company; the other sister wanted the same things. She was only looking at the things she wanted but never indicated growing up that she wanted that type of life. It reminds me of that old saying about the grass being greener on the other side, which could apply to this mystery film also. ON A RECOMMENDATION ADAM, played by Jake Gyllenhaal (Nocturnal Animals, End of Watch), rented a movie that had in the cast an actor who looked exactly like him. Both stunned and curious Adam began to do research on the actor to see if he could meet him and see what type of life he was leading. Directed by Denis Villeneuve (Arrival, Sicario) the cast also included Melanie Laurent (Beginners, Now You See Me) as Mary and Sarah Gadon (Dracula Untold, The Amazing Spider-Man 2) as Helen. This film festival winning dramatic thriller was fueled by the wonderful performance by Jake. The story kept my interest for the most part, though it had a certain oddness to it. There were a couple of times I had to sit and wonder if I was missing something in the story because it seemed as if the script was getting more cerebral. I think watching this DVD could lead to some discussion afterward in a variety of directions. The main thing I took away from this picture was the belief Adam was a wisher.
2 ½ stars – DVD
Flash Movie Review: Loving Vincent
HER EYES WERE FOLLOWING ME AS I started to walk away. I could never forget those eyes and where I saw them. Her smile was quiet as if she was almost embarrassed to let it out. There was another woman I recall from the same place who was perfectly sculpted with marbled skin and hair swept to the back of her head. She also had no arms. Many years ago I was fortunate enough to visit the Louvre museum in Paris. The building alone impressed me before I even stepped foot inside. After years of only seeing them as pictures in magazines or films, I could not believe I was standing in front of the Mona Lisa and Venus de Milo. You know how you form an image of something in your mind on how it might look in reality? Well I had an image for each of them and when I stood in front of them I realized what I had in my mind paled in comparison to seeing the actual painting and sculpture. Mona Lisa’s eyes were fascinating because they seemed to follow you going to the left or right side of her. They simply looked alive is all I can say. SITUATED IN THE HEART OF the city I live close by to is an art museum that some say is a world class museum. I have been a visitor to it numerous times throughout my life. The collection is extensive and varied with art pieces from the masters like Monet, Picasso, Hopper and Rembrandt. To see these artists’ works close up gives me an enormous amount of pleasure. When I look at a painting I not only study the brushstrokes, shading and choice of colors; I also envision the period of time it depicts. Besides paintings and sculpted pieces this museum has a space devoted to miniature rooms; I am talking rooms that are only as big as a shoebox. The detail in each room is remarkable and each room represents a different period of time, going back centuries. When I am looking at them I feel as if I am getting a glimpse of history. Now just imagine if some of the paintings were able to come to life and talk about themselves, one could get a real dose of the past. Well that is what I experienced when I watched this animated, biographical crime film that was nominated for an Oscar award. POSTMAN JOSEPH ROULIN, voiced by Chris O’Dowd (Molly’s Game, St. Vincent), was determined to get the deceased artist Vincent van Gogh’s returned last letter to his brother Theo. With no forwarding address Joseph assigned the task of finding Theo to Armand, voiced by Douglas Booth (Noah, Jupiter Ascending). Armand would start his search at the town where Vincent had died. His arrival would unveil clues to what really happened to Vincent. This film festival winner was visually one of the most incredible movie watching experiences I have had in a long time. The entire film was hand painted by over 100 artists. Taking inspiration from Vincent’s works, it literally looked like the characters came to life. The result of this process created a pictorial feast, seriously. The shading and illumination in this picture amazed me; I cannot even fathom how the artists did it. Not too familiar with Vincent’s life story, I did not know what was true or false. Honestly it did not matter to me because I enjoyed the way the story allowed each character to spin their thoughts about the situation. After I finished watching this DVD I felt as if I had been touring an art museum and all I wanted to do was learn more about Vincent van Gogh.
3 ½ stars — DVD
Flash Movie Review: Omar
THERE ARE SO MANY ADJECTIVES to accompany the feelings of love. Each qualifying word describes a different level or intensity to one’s love. There is deep love, crazy love, stupid love, unexpected love and mad love to name a few. I still remember this couple’s story on how they met. There was a famous nightclub in the city. Not being a drinker he never ventured into the club; in fact, despite all the hoopla about the place it held very little interest for him. It had been a long time since he was in a relationship and he was starting to feel lonely as his group of friends were starting to partner up and become couples. So one evening he was driving home from work and decided if there was a parking space in front of the nightclub he would park and go inside. Well as you may have guessed a spot opened up when a car pulled out of its parking spot just as he was driving up to the club. He parked his car, walked inside and searched for the restrooms. Making his way through the crowd of people he accidently bumped into someone who was also looking for a restroom. When each of them came back out they struck up a conversation. He offered to buy a drink so they made their way to a table. From that 1st drink and conversation they became bonded, each felt sparks and they have been together now over 30 years. I GUESS YOU COULD SAY they had instant love. Though I have not experienced that immediate rush of emotions, where I want to spend the rest of my life with that individual right away, I have seen it happen with other people. Love has such a strong influence on one’s actions and thoughts. Don’t you love when the person you fall in love with takes up a permanent residence in your mind and heart? By them being there any and all trials and tribulations of the day seem manageable, if not easier to handle. Knowing there is someone who supports you, accepts you with unconditional love creates a powerful connection where one might even feel invincible. I have seen where someone was so in love that it affected their common sense; however, I have never seen anything on the scale of danger that the main character in this romantic thriller was willing to do. FOR PALESTINIAN OMAR, PLAYED BY Adam Bakri (Slam, Ali and Nino), to pay a visit to Nadia, played by Leem Lubany (Rock the Kasbah, From A to B), he would have to scale a border wall. That action alone could get him killed. This Oscar nominated, film festival winning movie also starred Waleed Zvaiter (London Has Fallen, 20th Century Women) as Agent Rami, Samer Bisharat (The State-TV, The Looming Tower-TV) as Amjad and Eyad Hourani (Rattle the Cage, Medinah-TV) as Tarek. The cast was excellent which made the scenes with tension more intense. There was a chase scene where I realized I was holding my breath. The story was unbelievable and the script allowed the viewer to experience a variety of emotions. I prefer not to get into the political aspects of this picture, but it was hard to watch some of the scenes. At time riveting, at time tender; this foreign film displayed the strength of a person’s love that could not get broken. Arabic and Hebrew were spoken with English subtitles.
3 ½ stars — DVD
Flash Movie Review: Manufactured Landscapes
A TRAINED EYE IS NOT necessary to see the beauty in things. Walking down the street of a coastal town your eye catches a glimpse of the ocean between two dilapidated buildings. You came up to the space just as the sun slipped out from behind a cloud, sending a blanket of diamond confetti across the water’s surface. Down by the fisheries where the smell of fish is thick in the air, you see the skeleton of an eaten fish that some animal must have scavenged away from the dock as a fishing boat was unloading their catch. The way the skeleton was left on the ground minus its head, it looks like someone was trying to comb the unruly grass blades. So you see there are opportunities to find something special in the most ordinary of things. I have mentioned before that on vacation I tend to be a drive by shooter; that is, someone who can be driving along and spot something interesting that I want to photograph. If there is no traffic around I will stop the car in the middle of the road, roll down my window and snap a picture then drive away. HAVING GROWN UP IN THE city I am particularly fond of state and national parks. Seeing expansive landscapes, with very little trace of human interference, grounds me to the earth so to speak. The area where I live is flat, so viewing mountain ranges and canyons are exciting for me. You should see me at a park with my camera; I am shooting picture after picture of sights multiple times. I can shoot the same scene a few times but each one I make a subtle change like zooming in or focusing on an object off center. One of my dreams when I retire is to spend time every year visiting a national park until I have seen them all. Based on what I saw in this film festival winning documentary, I hope the parks will still be pristine by the time I can go see them. Maybe I will have to adjust my focus. CANADIAN PHOTOGRAPHER EDWARD BURTYNSKY has spent part of his life visiting different areas of the world where people have made an impact on their surroundings. Someone’s trash could be someone else’s treasure. Directed by Jennifer Baichwal (Long Time Running, Watermark) I found this film an amazing smorgasbord of visual actions; where out of the most mundane and blemished areas things were turned into beautiful art. Being a photographer I wondered if I was biased in my assessment, but if the visuals were standing alone I could possible see it. However with the narration and seeing what society was creating, I felt there was a definite message being broadcast in this story. Not that anything is being drummed into the viewer’s head, but one could certainly see what society’s actions were doing to the planet. On the flip side it was fascinating to see how our actions have an effect on the people who either live nearby or far away. Without giving too much away I have to tell you I was enthralled with the ship scenes. This was a thought provoking, visual treat for me.
3 1/4 stars — DVD
Flash Movie Review: Phantom Thread
FOR YOUR INFORMATION IT TAKES a large amount of discipline to stay in control. Or is it a lot of control to stay disciplined? When it comes to me, in certain areas, I have an incredible amount of discipline. Some of the things I have heard said about me are, “iron willed,” “determined,” “obsessed” and “fanatical” when it comes to my rule of not eating anything 5 hours before I go to sleep. I would say no matter where I am or what I am doing, I will not eat a morsel of food if it is close to my bed time. In the last 20 years I can count on one hand the times I broke this rule and it was for reasons outside of my control. Keeping stoic with my mouth shut is one of the ways I maintain control over my weight; it has worked for me my entire adult life. NOW THE FUNNY THING ABOUT control is it is very much a singular function. Rarely does one allow another controlling person to share their domain. Let us face it, there are some people who thrive on making all the decisions and there are others who do not want that responsibility. I used to be the one who always had and shared an opinion. If someone wanted to do such and such, I had no issue letting them know I was in agreement or disagreement. If I disagreed then I would tout my reasons why and try to persuade them to agree to my decision. I know this may sound a bit twisted and you know I would not disagree with you. As I grow older I have let go, or maybe I should say I have lost some of that intensity to the point I am comfortable sharing my spot with another individual who is disciplined in a similar vein. It can work just take a look at the musicians Hall and Oates or the designers Dolce & Gabbana. Oh wait maybe it doesn’t work if you take a look at what happened to Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis. This elegantly filmed, Oscar nominated romantic drama will give you a chance to see what being in control can do. REYNOLDS WOODCOCK, PLAYED BY Daniel Day-Lewis (Lincoln, Gangs of New York), was the guiding force to the success of his dressmaking business, House of Woodcock. From his chance meeting with Alma, played by Vicky Krieps (Hanna, The Colony), she would become an inspiration for his work. Alma had an opinion about it. This film festival winning movie also starred Lesley Manville (Another Year, Topsy-Turvy) as Cyril and newcomer Sue Clark as Biddy. Written and directed by Paul Thomas Anderson (There Will be Blood, Boogie Nights), Daniel has said this will be his last film. If it is true then he is leaving on a high note; his along with the rest of the cast were simply perfection with their acting skills. The details in the script and the sets all fit together to form a complete puzzle. I will say the story was different to the point I left the theater with mixed emotions. For me the story was not what kept my interest in this picture, it was the emotions and nuances of the characters. Also with the story being set in London during the 1950s, the style of fashion played a part in what I referred to as the details of the sets. Kudos to Paul Thomas Anderson for his control of the story and direction and I have to tip my hat to Daniel for his discipline on picking the best movies for him to star in; I will try to control myself over the loss of not seeing him play in another film.
3 stars
Flash Movie Review: The Post
THEY WERE THE IDEAL DINNER guests that dined with us. Informative, knowledgeable, honest and dependable; with such admirable traits they were always welcome into our home. I learned so much from them while eating my dinner. The topics of conversation went from world news to state news to local news and once in a while a tidbit of a heartwarming story. Sure there were times we got shocked by what they told us; but we also could be joyful while listening to them. It all depended on what they were talking about since they were the ones who brought up the various topics. I admit I may not have understood everything they spoke about, but I would either ask someone in the room or after dinner I would try to look up information on the subject. There was one time they were talking about a war that had broken out in a country I had never heard of before. So after the meal ended I went over to our encyclopedias to find out more about the country and where it was located. It occurs to me you may know these dinner guests and you too might have had them over for dinner; they were Walter Cronkite, Chet Huntley and David Brinkley. FROM THESE NEWS BROADCASTERS I grew up trusting the news. Looking back I realize I knew nothing or very little about their personal beliefs or thoughts; they were simply doing their job which was reporting on the news. I am well aware there are places in the world where people like them would be killed for telling certain news stories. It is funny I recall from years ago, while I was in school, sitting in on a meeting for the school’s newspaper. A couple of student reporters presented their story to the staff and teacher advisor. Their article shined an unfavorable light on the school to the point where the advisor suggested they shelf the story. The majority of the paper’s staff immediately protested the idea and a discussion ensued concerning the definition of newsworthy. The students insisted the school paper was created as a news source for the student body; it was not going to only print “cheerful” stories. As far as the staff was concerned if the news was worthy then it should be in the newspaper. Voting against the advisor’s wishes the paper went with the story and it did get a response from the student body. It started a dialog on what the school needed to do to fix a particular troublesome situation. This was my first example in the power of the printed word. WHEN A GOVERNMENT COVERUP is brought to light Kay Graham, played by Meryl Streep (Florence Foster Jenkins, The Giver), the first female publisher of a major newspaper finds herself in a test of wills between her editor, staff and the government. What took place would set a new standard in reporting the news. Directed by Steven Spielberg (Bridge of Spies, Catch Me if You Can) this biographical drama also starred Tom Hanks (The Circle, Cast Away) as Ben Bradlee, Sarah Paulson (Carol, American Horror Story-TV) as Tony Bradlee, Bob Odenkirk (Nebraska, Better Call Saul) as Ben Bagdikian and Tracy Letts (Lady Bird, The Lovers) as Fritz Beebe. My only negative comment for this incredibly told story is that it started out slow for me, but only for a brief time. The acting from Meryl and Tom was superb. The script played out much like a thriller to me. And though this true story took place in the 1970s it is as current now as it was back then. I totally enjoyed the way Steven told the story with his direction, even loving the little details that went into so many of the scenes. This movie is already a film festival winner and I am sure more awards will be coming its way. What an amazing profession is news reporting; people who risk so much to tell the truth. There is nothing that came across as fake in this movie and that is the truth.
3 ½ stars
Flash Movie Review: Hostiles
I BELIEVE IT IS SAFE to say all of us at one time or another will have to do something we do not want to do. Though I am not a fan of this word I would almost venture to say “something we hate to do.” There are some things that one does not like but has to do such as pay taxes, clean house, shovel snow and so on. My major dislike falls under home and car repairs; I am not handy and have a hard time dealing with repair people. However I know necessity overcomes distasteful, uncomfortable situations. Remembering my elementary school years, I can honestly say I always hated going to our 1st PE class after the summer break. Every year the gym teachers would use this day to weigh each student. Getting on the scale in front of the whole class was bad enough, but then to have the instructor loudly call out each weight to the student they picked to record it was humiliating. There was always snickers and giggles from several classmates when the weight was high. HATE TOOK ON A WHOLE different meaning the more I studied history. Where my dislike was more of an abstract type, like a procedure or function, the hatred I was seeing among human beings was ugly to me. To dislike or distrust someone because of their looks or differences was hard for me to comprehend. One of the things I noticed about hatred was its ability to draw in multiple individuals like a magnet, without them even questioning the validity of their new found hatred. In a warped way it evokes feelings concerning being left out if you know what I mean. It is a fear some people have where they are afraid they will be missing something or not be part of a group, which makes them act without thinking about what they are doing. I guess what I am trying to say is there are people who hate for hate’s sake. From my own experiences, I have seen two people hate each other for so long that they cannot remember why they started to hate each other in the first place; that is how blind and undiscriminating hate can be. If you are interested in seeing an example of what I am talking about then do see this film festival winning dramatic, adventure western. FORCED AGAINST HIS WILL Captain Joseph J. Blocker, played by Christian Bale (The Big Short, Out of the Furnace), was ordered to accompany and protect Chief Yellow Hawk, played by Wes Studi (Heat, The Last of the Mohicans), on his journey back to his homeland. Captain Blocker would rather have seen the chief dead. Set in the 1890s this film included actors Rosamund Pike (Gone Girl, A United Kingdom) as Rosalie Quaid, Ben Foster (Hell or High Water, The Messenger)) as Sgt. Charles Wills and Scott Shepherd (Bridge of Spies, Side Effects) as Wesley Quaid. Watching this picture was akin to reading a book; it told a story from beginning to end. With incredible acting from Rosamund and Christian, these two elevated the sometimes uneven script. Beautifully filmed I found the story as relevant today as it was back then. I thoroughly enjoyed the way the script unfolded, never getting cheesy or preachy. There were times where the multiple silent scenes seemed to drag out the story longer than it needed to be; however, I felt the story carried some importance to it. In my opinion I cannot imagine someone hating this well acted, beautifully filmed picture.
3 stars
Flash Movie Review: Downsizing
IT APPEARS TO ME when people are reaching a certain age they start going through their home to get rid of stuff. I have recently noticed this due to a few friends, who started doing this very thing recently. They are rummaging through their closets, drawers and basements pulling out a variety of items, from unused tools to shoes that were never taken out of their original packaging. I know this because they are sending me photos showing their stuff piled up, waiting to be donated, recycled or thrown away. In fact a friend of mine who runs an antique/thrift shop was telling me how the store has always gotten items from estate sales or people who are clearing out the homes of their deceased relatives. However now he noticed more and more people are bringing in their own items, telling him they no longer need it or they are downsizing. WHEN THE TIME COMES for me to reorganize my house I know I will have a lot of items to donate or give away. Like so many people I am an acquirer (a kinder way of saying I like to shop). There was a period of time where I bought into the mindset that the person with the most stuff wins. Because I have the space when I bought, let us say, a new pair of pants or shoes, I did not bother getting rid of a similar item from my closet. I think I do this because I have this constant thought that at some point in time I will need that item for whatever reason. Slacks that are too big for me hang in the attic in case I put on weight or have a dinner guest that spills on their pants and needs to wear something while their stained slacks are in the wash. Maybe a better way of explaining this desire for stuff is to look at the way electronic items and children’s toys are marketed these days. Now when a new thing comes out it suddenly becomes a big event, drawing in and making people believe they would be better off with the new item. Need takes a back seat to desire. Let us face it, who wants to feel like they are being left behind as everyone else is jumping on the shopping bandwagon for new stuff. This film festival winning dramatic comedy has something to say about it. FINDING IT HARDER TO make ends meet Audrey and Paul Safranek, played by Kristen Wiig (Ghostbusters, Masterminds) and Matt Damon (The Martian, The Great Wall), agree to become part of the new trend of downsizing oneself to 5” tall and live like a millionaire. However being small doesn’t mean one will have smaller issues to deal with. With Christoph Waltz (Tulip Fever, Big Eyes) as Dusan Mirkovic, Hong Chau (Inherent Vice, Treme-TV) as Ngoc Lan Tran and Rolf Lassgard (A Man Called Ove, After the Wedding) as Dr. Jorgen Asbjornsen; this story caught my attention right from the start. The first part was both fun and curious; but then other story lines came in and none of them ever became fully developed for me. I found it an odd mix that made me lose interest, though I enjoyed the visual contrasts. The story presented was a social satire that could have led to some interesting conversation afterwards, but instead what was in my head was clutter I wanted to clear out.
2 stars
Flash Movie Review: I, Tonya
IT WAS THE FIRST time I was invited to such an event and it would be my last. I was invited to an ice skating birthday party many years ago. The party was being held at an indoor ice skating rink that had a party room that my friend’s parents decorated with balloons and signs. I had never gone ice skating before so I was excited to try it out. After lacing up the skates, on wobbly legs I made my way to the rink, grabbing any solid object for balance on my way. Stepping on the ice I remained at the side with my hand on the short wall that surrounded the rink. I had seen ice skaters on TV and thought it was easy to stand on a thin steel blade but I was wrong. Every time I let go of the wall and tried to skate I fell down. I do not think I ever made it around the rink once without my skates slipping out from underneath me, either falling face first on the ice or on my backside. THOUGH THERE WAS STILL time to skate before we were having cake, I got off the ice and sat on a bench where there was carpeting. I would not say I was sad, maybe frustrated; since there were people on the ice who made it look effortless. There were a few individuals who would skate face forward then suddenly do a hop so they could skate going backwards. I still remember one girl who was given a wide space around her because she was doing these incredible fast spins, where she simply looked like a blur or did spinning jumps in the air that captivated me. These few people almost looked like the skaters I would watch at the Olympics and other ice skating competitions. Sitting there looking at my discarded skates, I wondered if it was possible to get a second blade on each boot. I just felt if I had more blades to balance on I could make my way around the rink. And do you know what the funny part is to this story? I remember seeing Tonya Harding on television when she did something that no other female skater had done before and no one I saw at that rink was like her. FROM A YOUNG AGE Tonya, played by Margot Robbie (Suicide Squad, The Wolf of Wall Street), stood out from the other ice skaters; her mother LaVona Golden, played by Allison Janney (Hairspray, The Hours), stood out even more. Based on true events this film festival winning, biographical drama has to be seen to be believed. Allison was totally outrageous in the role and I see award nominations piling up for her. Margot was a perfect fit for this character; it was a smart choice on her part that will make her even more bankable as they say. With Sebastian Stan (Captain America franchise, The Covenant) as Jeff Gillooly, Paul Walter Hauser (Kingdom-TV, Super Troopers 2) as Shawn and Julianne Nicholson (Black Mass, August: Osage County) as Diane Rawlinson; I cannot remember how long it has been since I sat in a movie theater laughing out loud. The script beautifully blended outrageous moments with tragic undertones. The story when it happened was so bizarre to begin with, I enjoyed seeing the behind the scenes stuff in this movie even if it was not true. One thing I knew for certain was the judgmental views officials had about Tonya. No matter which way one chooses to view Tonya in this picture, the fact remains she did something astounding. You will have to decide what it was she did.
3 ½ stars
Flash Movie Review: Omar
JUST AS YESTERDAY’S REVIEW talked about love, so does today’s in a slightly different vein. I have seen among my friends and family members who were in love their ability to disregard or disconnect themselves from common sense. A friend of mine was in a toxic relationship; she did not know it at the time, but it was obvious to her friends. She had been telling us these stories about her significant other that bordered on being outlandish—to those who could think rationally. I was told the reason this guy was not working a steady job was because he had gotten a huge inheritance. My question to her was why he borrowed money from her time to time. The response given was his funds weren’t always liquid; in other words, he was waiting for a CD to mature or a dividend payment to arrive. I hear you; I wasn’t buying it either. One day we all happened to be together when he mentioned something about his stocks. I asked him a couple of questions and discovered he was lying; his so called stock dividend payment was coming from a company I knew did not pay dividends. HERE IS THE THING THOUGH, when someone is deeply in love they may not want to hear comments from friends or choose not to believe them anyway. Being in love doesn’t always mean one will remain rational. I have learned not to offer an opinion unless I am directly asked; even then I do my best to offer my comments without any judgments. As I mentioned in my previous review love is a powerful emotion; there is no way I am going to go up against that force. Besides love having the ability to cloud one’s judgment, it can also put a person in danger. If I think about it the dangerous aspects may come about from that disconnect I mentioned earlier; but regardless, there is a reason you have heard the term, “acts of passion,” in criminal cases. Gratefully I have not encountered anyone committing such an extreme thing, though I have known some people to put themselves in harm’s way due to love. Right from the start I was nervous for the main character in this Oscar nominated, dramatic romance. LOVE HAD A HOLD on Omar, played by Adam Bakri (Slam, Ali and Nino). To visit Nadia, played by Leem Lubany (Rock the Kasbah, From A to B), he had to scale an Israeli built border wall. The baker was willing to take the risk but how long could his luck hold out? This film festival winning thriller also starred Waleed Zuaiter (The Men Who Stare at Goats, London Has Fallen) as Agent Rami, Samer Bisharat (The Aquatic Effect, The State-TV) as Amjad and Eyad Hourani (Rattle the Cage, Medinah-TV) as Tarek. Being set in the occupied territories already added an element of tension to the story, besides the characters’ actions. I was pulled into this film quickly due to the conflicts presented in the script; there were the physical conflicts between the Israelis and Palestinians along with the conflicts of love. With landscapes unfamiliar to me, I felt I was transported into the characters’ city which only enhanced the excellent acting I had already noticed by the actors. I liked the way the director kept the story moving without delving into the political aspects too much. For myself I had to watch this DVD without judging the reality of the story. Keeping that in mind this was an intense story about love. Arabic and Hebrew were spoken with English subtitles.
3 ½ stars — DVD
moviejoltz 