HALF ACENTURY OF DIASPORA/08

The Palestinian refugees right of return is sacred and should never be denied as a human and ethical right. This film makes that clear by discovering the eternal Palestinian dream, and documenting the horrendous and painful reality of being a refugee, swamped with poverty, denial, and neglect, as well as the broken history of a whole nation. The camera becomes a hollow spirit, driving us deep into narrow and crowded alleyways in its hunt for faces with painful overtures, young children breaking the walls of their prisons, the workers who repair those walls again, and the old who live only to inherit their dreams to the next generation (the dream of returning).
To get this message across Al-Sawalma uses high-tech camera work, both on the ground and in the air, resonating back and forth between tones of attestation and drama, making it tangible. This films power comes not only from its documentation of an appalling situation, but also from its use of a dramatic license, by creating accurate and powerful mosaics of what is said and seen and what is loud and whispered in the refugee camp. Al-Sawalma proved that he could transform static situations into dynamic and moving ones, which in turn transform the movie into a neoteric force and a strong factual statement.
.By using excellent cinematography, a penetrating narration, and definitive music, Al-Sawalma is able to blend together a collective hope in this powerful docu-drama.
-Ahmad Rafeeq Awad, Palestinian novelist
Published in Al-Ayyam

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People & Blogs

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• jordan syria
• The Holy War
• sacred