I am not a film critic. I am not a writer. And I certainly am not an artist. But I do recognize a masterpiece when I see it. A masterpiece so grand that it has left me speechless for days. Lost for words.
"The Sleeping Tree" made its world premiere on December 13 2014 at the Dubai International Film Festival and is the first Bahraini feature film to be produced in almost a decade.
Capturing the magnificent literary writings of Fareed Ramadan, and set against the soulful musical creations of Mohammed Haddad, Director Mohammed Buali takes the viewers on an 87-minute cinematic mind trip of emotional, physical and spiritual twists and turns.
It tells the story of the trials and tribulations of a Bahraini family, revolving around their bedridden daughter Amina, who suffers from cerebral palsy. The film is a multifaceted tale of husband and wife, journeying back and forth between past and present, struggling between the reality of what is, and the dream of what is not. Between the living and the dead.
With a storyline that had me mesmerized from the opening scene, to a touching personal dedication from the Director at the end, The Sleeping Tree will awaken the senses of viewers and leave them questioning their own interpretation of the film. Lost for words. And therein lies the beauty of it.
About the Director: In 2008, Buali laughed when he was nicknamed "The Prodigy" by one of Bahrain's most prominent journalists after participating in a filmmaking symposium at a local university. Today, through the extraordinary portrayal of the dead in his debut feature film, The Sleeping Tree is living proof that Buali is nothing short of a miracle in the regional film industry.
