The Syrian Civil War, which some think may be drawing to a close as I write this in late 2018, started in early 2011. In 2012 a Damascus mother, Sana, raises her perky young son while coping with daily power cuts and water shortages, as explosions provide frequent background noise. One day, after being turned away from a stall selling gas when the military commandeer the entire lot, Sana joins brother and sister duo Jamal and Reem on their quest to source some outside the city limits.
Jamal casts no shadow and it is here the film hits what is for me one of two major stumbling blocks: no explanation is given for this phenomenon. Is it some Syrian folklore? An urban legend? Is Jamal a ghost? Does it mean his soul is dead? Is he *about* to die? The possibilities are endless, so it would have been nice had writer-director Soudade Kaadan provided some explanation.
The second big problem I have with the film is Kaadan's direction. Too often she uses extreme close-ups which make it difficult for the viewer to place or understand the action: for instance, a sequence in which Sana's son makes candlelight shadow animals on the wall is wasted because Kaadan will not pull back the camera so the viewer can properly see what the boy is doing. Also, she frequently moves the camera slo-o-o-o-o-wly from one inconsequential object to another - for example, from the branch of one tree to the branch of its neighbour - which is a nice technique the first couple of times she uses it, but ends up becoming tiresome through over-use.
So in summary I am afraid I found this film a pretty frustrating experience, which considering the important message it could have been getting across - how civilians are affected by warfare - is a shame. Sadly, this is the most disappointing of the many films I saw at the 2018 London Film Festival.
Jamal casts no shadow and it is here the film hits what is for me one of two major stumbling blocks: no explanation is given for this phenomenon. Is it some Syrian folklore? An urban legend? Is Jamal a ghost? Does it mean his soul is dead? Is he *about* to die? The possibilities are endless, so it would have been nice had writer-director Soudade Kaadan provided some explanation.
The second big problem I have with the film is Kaadan's direction. Too often she uses extreme close-ups which make it difficult for the viewer to place or understand the action: for instance, a sequence in which Sana's son makes candlelight shadow animals on the wall is wasted because Kaadan will not pull back the camera so the viewer can properly see what the boy is doing. Also, she frequently moves the camera slo-o-o-o-o-wly from one inconsequential object to another - for example, from the branch of one tree to the branch of its neighbour - which is a nice technique the first couple of times she uses it, but ends up becoming tiresome through over-use.
So in summary I am afraid I found this film a pretty frustrating experience, which considering the important message it could have been getting across - how civilians are affected by warfare - is a shame. Sadly, this is the most disappointing of the many films I saw at the 2018 London Film Festival.
