capital-kiker

25 May 2012

Israels finest hour at the Oscars

From all the movies we submitted to the Academy Awards during theyears, Ajami stands victorious. A great story about small hopes anddreams in an average-Israeli-reality in which no one is sacred. It isstory telling at it's best, and i'm not saying this strictly becausei'm from Israel. it's simply a great movie. a conflict is as good asthe key actors within and in this case, it shows the variety ofpersonalities that the Israel-Palestine conflict has. I'm curious toknow how the movie is accepted around the world. There are a lot ofsmall gestures that are hidden in the language itself and can't betranslated. Plus, you have to live here in order to fully understandthe meaning and complexity's of the actions portrayed in the movie. Ihope and pray that Ajami will be this years winner just because itdeserves it more than anything else.

zikood

24 May 2012

Even at 1010, the film is still underrated

Ajami is a masterpiece, a film of the rare quality you look for whenhitting the cinema. The achievements of this film are far greater thanany shortcomings or glitches people may find.As someone who's been to many of the exact locations (or similar) thefilm portrays, I was thrilled to see how well the film managed toconnect these geographical dots together and create a very specificvisual language.Not often you see so many diverse landscapes and locations in one filmwithout the diversity being annoying and decorative. In a Ajami's case,the wide selection of locations enhances the strong linkage: a smallvillage near Nablus, the city of Tel-Aviv, a Bedouin encampment can beall linked by a single event.By going in digging backwards into the events, it seems like only morequestions arise, more events happen to be linked and the realityhappens to be far different to what we expect.This is the biggest quality of the film: It manages to open the eyes ofthose who thought their eyes were open already.

Anton Bitel

24 May 2012

There are hints at the sort of collective punishment so often rained down by Palestinians and Israelis upon one another, but really there are far broader concerns here in what is, in effect, a drama of divisions

23 May 2012

Best Israeli film made to date

In the genre of the great Brazilian urban films City of God and City Below, and genius Italian neo-realism cinema of Rosselini and DeSica, this is a gripping Israeli neo-realistic crime art film that explores the tensions of life amongest the ethnic melting pot that comprises the population of Israel: Jews, Muslim and Christian Israeli-Arabs. Steering away from Middle East politics for a welcome change, all groups are portrayed with great humanity and understanding played by an excellent cast of non-professional actors trained for this film in a very unique style shown in the Special Features section. Interestingly, these Israeli-Arabs, residents of a Jaffa slum bordering Tel Aviv speak Arabic richly laced with Hebrew words and phrases. Excellent film that I recommend highly. Other than I Love You Rosa, this is probably the best film to come out of Israel, at least in the past 20 years, and it's too bad it didn't win a well deserved Oscar for Best Foreign Film. I loved it both times I saw it: in the theater and on DVD.

Chris Knipp

15 May 2012

Israels mean streets

Ajami is a first film by the team of Scandar Copti, an Israeli Arab(with a Christian family name), and Yaron Shani, an Israeli Jew. Itgained recognition at Cannes and in Israel; and is nominated for theBest Foreign Oscar. Using locally recruited non-actors, shooting in theAjami neighborhood of Jaffa, which has become a mostly Arab ghettooutpost of Tel Aviv, 'Ajami' is full of improvisation and hand-heldcamera work that give it an intense feeling of immediacy -- and seetheswith action disturbing enough to leave you feeling bruised. Israelicinema is remarkable for a tiny country; it's a pity more Arabs outsideIsrael can't see this film. Despite the myriad hostilities andmisunderstandings 'Ajami' depicts -- between Palestinians from theterritories and Israeli Arabs; Arab Christians and Arab Muslims;Israelis and Arabs; rich and poor; old and young -- there is hope inthe fact that an Arab and a Jew could team up for such passionatefilm-making.'Ajami' interweaves multiple story-lines with a documentary feel usinga large cast and, to make matters more complicated but also underlineinterconnections, it's divided into chapters that are not quite inchronological order so some events are seen again, from a differentangle the second time. Most of the scenes are in Arabic but some are inHebrew or a mixture of Hebrew and Arabic. All the location inter-titlesand the end credits are rigorously both Hebrew and Arabic -- a practicenot uncommon in Israeli cinema, but especially resonant here.The action begins with a drive-by shooting -- of the wrong person. Ayoung boy, Nasri (Fouad Habash), who narrates the film, his soft voicegiving it a kind of clarity and delicacy, is present when his cousin isshot while working on a car in the street. The hit man meant to getNasri's brother Omar (Shahir Kabaha), as revenge for Nasri's uncle'skilling of an extortionist. Omar is now clearly in mortal danger.The neighborhood leader and restaurant owner Abu Elias (YoussefSahwani) arranges a deal-brokering among village elders at a bedouincamp where men bid back and forth as to how much protection or payoffmoney is required for Omar to stay alive. Omar can't possibly raise thesum finally arrived upon, but he's indentured at Abu Elias' restaurant;and there, Omar turns out to be in love with his boss' daughter Hadir(Ranin Karim), a serious no-no, since her family is Christian andOmar's is Muslim. Next there arrives a bright-eyed and innocentteenager, Malek (Ibrahim Frege) who sneaks in from the occupiedterritories and is an illegal worker in the restaurant, an Arabexploited by an Arab, the harsh Abu Elias. Malek also has an impossiblefinancial burden, needing to raise many thousands to pay for a bonemarrow transplant for his seriously ill mother.Eventually both Omar and Malek are drawn into trying to deal dope toraise money, against the strong objections of Nasri, and totallyagainst the wishes of Abu Elias, who wishes to appear to functionwithin the law, even if he doesn't.Meanwhile there are the Israeli and near-Israeli parts of the story.Dishonest Israeli cop Dando (Eran Naim) appears both as a bastard, whenpersecuting the boys who're clumsily attempting to sell cocaine, and asofty, when it comes to the disappearance of his younger brother fromthe army, perhaps captured by Palestinians, an event that devastateshis family (these are the all-Hebrew scenes). The Arab co-directorCopti himself plays Binj, a Palestinian who speaks fluent Hebrew andhas a non-Arabic speaking Jewish girlfriend. He is pressured by hisArab friends for this, and his life turns tragic when he holds drugsfor the others after his brother has stabbed a Jewish neighbor in anargument over noisy animals, and the cops manhandle him, with Dando onhand in his bad-cop role. This sequence about Binj seems to dramatizethe futility of cross-over dreams in this harsh world. (The problemsfaced by Arabs living in a Hebrew-speaking Israeli environment has alsobeen dealt with in the hit Israeli sitcom "Arab Work.") It doesn't necessarily seem as though Dando is more dangerous, in asense, for the young Palestinians than the brutish Abu Elias, whothreatens to break Omar's bones if he continues his courtship of Hadir.Partly it is the elders who appear as the villains, more threateninghere than Israeli checkpoint guards.One has to grapple with all these plot elements to follow 'Ajami.' Theintersections get complicated, and the film is a bit under-edited attwo full hours, but there is a wealth of cultural material that getsacross along with the insistent problems and an overwhelming sense ofhopelessness for young Arabs. There is great warmth among friends andfamily members of all stripes. But even fun moments seem framed inscariness, like a birthday celebration for Malek which he's sent to bythreatening him that the "government" (الحكومة, i.e. police) is afterhim. Even the birthday present they give Malek, an electrified tennisracket, has an edge of menace. 'Ajami' doesn't stop for a breath or amoment of happiness: it succeeds in convincing you that isn't possible.Further proof of that impossibility came early this month (February2010) and life imitated art when Scandar Copti's brother Tony, asupporting actor in the film, was arrested after Israeli police accusedsome Ajami teenagers of hiding drugs who said they were only burying adog. This led to a brawl in which Tony Copti and another brother werearrested and hauled off to the police station for questioning,according to a 'Haaretz' article.

Nozz

14 May 2012

Confusing but well acted, holds interest

There is the sensitive kid thrust into a situation that requires morematurity and smarts than normal for his age, there is the couple whoselove incurs disapproval because it crosses ethnic lines, there is theauthority figure who protects you today but may turn against youtomorrow... the problem is, this movie has two of each of those. Thecast of characters is huge and hard to keep track of, the plot isartificially discontinuous, and in short if you want to get the moviestraight, you'd better be ready to see it twice. Which you may want to,because the acting is convincing and although the characters are usedfrom time to time to make a clear and didactic sociopolitical point,they win considerable sympathy from the viewer-- without, for the mostpart, being oversentimentalized.

Daniel M. Kimmel

13 May 2012

Hollywood [may]think that Ajami is making a political statement... given the partnership of the directors. Unfortunately, it's not enough to make this a memorable film.

Colin Covert

13 May 2012

Any given half-hour of the film has dramatic impact; at two hours, it's a power punch to the gut.

07 May 2012

Missing dreams!

Ajami is a haifa's neighborhood. A cresol of cultures where different points of view exist and collide; a hazardous wasteland where Muslims and Christians are forced to live. Through the lives and times of several personages, we are witness about how messy and compelling the situation becomes till the boiling point is reached. Nasri (13)is a teenager who lives scared. Malek (the main feature) is a Palestine refugee who works ilegally in Israel, whose admiration and love for his elder brother and the serious health state of his mother forces him to cross over certain forbidden rules, and Binj is a rich Palestine who dreams with a promissory future together with his Jew girlfriend.These intersections of fate will make its appearance to twist and bend hopes and illusions; dreams and projects in this messy territory where the uncertainess rules and survive today is the main priority. A formidable movie whose realism and graphic crudeness have become a referential and one of the ten best films of this year.

Ella Taylor

06 May 2012

Untidy, despairing, oddly exhilarating.

Owen Gleiberman

30 April 2012

Like an Israeli Amores Perros crossed with City of God.

gregking4

29 April 2012

a gritty and edgy drama set on the mean streets of Jaffa

Ajami is a gritty and edgy drama set on the mean streets of Jaffa, anarea of Tel Aviv with high unemployment and crime rates. It also is amelting pot of ethnic, racial and religious differences. Like Gomorrah,etc, the film follows a number of interwoven story lines andcharacters, and events are seen from a number of differentperspectives.The crux of the story deals with an act of revenge that sparks aviolent war between two crime clans. But the ripples of that act ofretribution affect the lives of many within the community, includingthe innocent. Ajami has been written and directed by Yaron Shani (whoseprevious film was the short Disphoria) and first time directorPalestinian Scandar Copti. The pair has used non-professional actors,which lends a raw and natural feel to the performances. The film'scentral character is Omar (Shahir Kabaha), is a young Israeli of Arabdescent who crosses some gangsters and has to broker a deal to save hisfamily. Part of that deal involves dealing drugs, which leads him intoeven more troubled waters.The film's creators suggest that there is no easy solution to thetensions and cultural divide of this area, but still the film holds outhope for the future.

28 April 2012

The hatred goes nowhere No Winners, All Losers

A powerful film, by courageous filmmakers. Very hard to watch, and little makes sense, in the realm of anyone who wishes for a sense of peace and understanding. It, apparently, can't happen, and that's upsetting. "Ajami" is brilliant in its display of frustration from all. Senseless brutality from both sides. Glad I live in the USA, where we only have to fight idiot politicians.

27 April 2012

Walking the Tightrope

I rented "Ajami" because it was a recent Best Foreign Language Oscar nominee which has been about as good a recommendation as I can think of for a film. "Ajami" lived up to those expectations and then some. The film, as I understand it, is about Palestinians living in or near Israel. I understand from other reviews that this is an Israeli film which gives me pause to consider. I cannot speak to the authenticity of its' portrayal of the different communities so I leave those potential criticisms to more authoritative reviewers. For me, I was drawn into a sense of reality that I readily accepted. In doing so, I was able to truly enjoy "Ajami". Most every character in "Ajami" has their own shortcomings. There are no good guys vs. bad guys although there are some better and some worse. The life style we see in "Ajami" is problematic on many levels and I concluded that revealing these challenges is the purpose of the film. At times there are unfinished issues in the movie while at times there are issues revisited with a twist.The situation regarding Israel and her Arab neighbors is one of the worlds biggest dilemnas. Many offer varied solutions but the reality is that, uless all sides find a way to get along together, there will only be winners and losers. That merely continues the problem. "Ajami" gives me a better focus on the humanity of trying to get by day to day in a powder keg.

Kenneth Turan

27 April 2012

It has a complex, elliptical structure that uses unconventional filming techniques to tell a bleak and fatalistic story conveyed with an unnerving sense of verisimilitude.

Marshall Fine

27 April 2012

Ajami isn't a downbeat film, though it is a relentless one. It is alive with energy, if only the energy devoted to survival.

Red-125

22 April 2012

Theyre neighbors, but theyre not friends

Ajami (2009) is an Israeli film nominated for Academy Award BestForeign Language film. It's written and co-directed by an Israeli and aPalestinian--Scandar Copti and Yaron Shani.This is a powerful film that takes place in the Ajami district, on theoutskirts of Jaffa. Ajami is a mixed neighborhood, where Muslims,Christians, and Jews coexist in an uneasy truce. The film opens with ascene of violence, and then flashes back to an earlier scene ofviolence for which the opening scene violence was a retaliation. There were five plot threads, all of them interrelated. Each scene waspowerful, but I sometimes had trouble remembering how the charactersknew each other, and how their history was shaping their presentactions.We saw this film at the superb Rochester Jewish Film Festival, but itwill work well on DVD. In fact, I think DVD might be better, becausethen you can go back and review what previous scene led to the sceneyou're watching. It all fits together, but it was hard for me toremember just how it fits together. It's worth watching the movie and,if need be, watching it again.

Nora Lee Mandel

22 April 2012

Gripping, gritty tragedy of complex families who cross at the wrong place at the wrong time. Misunderstood intentions and attitudes sadly lead inexorably to violence.

Peter Bradshaw

17 April 2012

The pattern of connections and coincidences is a little overschematic, but the movie has energy, especially in the grippingly real shooting scene at the beginning.

dromasca

17 April 2012

Ajami is part of our world

'Ajami', the Israeli entry for the Oscar this year is very differentfrom the successful films that represented the country in the previousyears. Directed by two newcomers on the cinema scene Scandar Copti andYaron Shani, it is acted most of the time in Arabic and deals with aworld that many Israelis know only from the news - the crime andpoverty dominated Arab districts at the periphery of the Israeli bigcities.The name of the film is of one of these areas, in Jaffo, southand close to the shining lights of the Tel Aviv metropolis.Playing a little on the violent suburbs genre that was successful inother off-mainstream cinema schools 'Ajami' a complex crime story,involving a few characters who seem to be doomed for tragedy. AnIsraeli Muslim Arab finds himself in the middle of a families feud thatturns into violence, murder and revenge. An illegal Palestinian workerbadly needs money to help his ailing mother. Both will need theprotection of a rich restaurant owner who is also a kind of localauthority beyond and above police and law enforcement. Both will becomeinvolved in a drug deal which ends in shootings. Police seems unable tocontrol the area and fits badly in the landscape, its appearance seemsjust to generate more conflict and violence than law and order. One ofthe policemen lives his own tragedy, his brother soldier brotherdisappears and is found later in Palestinian territory, probablykidnapped and murdered by terrorists. All these disparate threads comenicely together towards the end and the intelligent script writing isthe best part of the film.It is not a pleasant film to see, and not designed to be so. The storyis told from the perspective of the different characters, it requiresattention to follow, and even if it has logic and all pieces of thepuzzle eventually fit well, the different angles and the jumps in timemake the film difficult or at least demanding to see. Actors aredirected towards a very natural way of acting, improvisation and livingthe character seems to be the rule rather than careful rehearsal of therole - this gives a feeling of natural and chaos of life, but it asksthe viewer rather than the director to fill in with meaning whathappens on screen. Last, the colors and landscape is in many casesdesolate and soulless, dirty and brutal, as the world the characterslive in.This realistic piece of cinema succeeds to be both direct in its modeof expression and sophisticated in its story-telling. The averageIsraeli viewer is impacted by the image of a part of the country andsocial life that is close and far at the same time. The finaloff-screen words belong to one of the characters, a child of theneighborhood who draws the comics representation of the story all alongthe film, to become part of the drama in the final. 'Do not close youreyes' - this message may be part of the whole society, as Ajami is partof the same world we all live in.