“Paradise Now” (2005) directed by Hany Abu-Assad, written by Hany Abu-Assad and Bero Beyer
Kais Nashif and Ali Suliman as Said and Khaled in Hany Abu-Assad's "Paradise Now" (2005)
“Paradise Now” is a film that I have heard about a lot. Newspaper articles, Festival booklets, Reviews, References, Awards – throughout the past couple of years, the title just kept coming up. I decided to finally find out what buzz was surrounding that film and now rented it on DVD.
“Paradise Now” is a very engaging and moving picture that will make you think. The story revolves around Said and Khaled, two young Palestinian men living in the occupied West Bank, who have been recruited by a radical group to carry out a suicide mission against the Israeli occupiers.
Said and Khaled are ordinary men embedded in their culture. They are young, idealistic, and feel responsible for their people – they are not sure how, but they are determined to help bring change to the Near-East, hoping for a peaceful and better life for future generations, and a free and peaceful Palestine. Through extremist propaganda they are led to believe that by carrying out suicide missions against the Israeli occupiers they will help the Palestinian cause. But as they get closer to their mission they begin to doubt their motives and fear that the holy and noble martyrdom is actually nothing other than civilian murder, which will not bring any improvement to the region whatsoever.
Kais Nashif and Ali Suliman as Said and Khaled in Hany Abu-Assad's "Paradise Now" (2005)
The biggest strength of the film is the balanced and fair treatment of both sides – even though the story is set exclusively on the Palestinian side, the film always approaches the Arab-Israeli conflict in an unbiased way, carefully examining the different positions while throwing in arguments from alternating points of view. It centers on questioning the logic of one-sided blame and revenge, that is continuously used by both sides to legitimize the harsh and cruel actions towards their respective enemy as a necessary means.
Even though the central question of how to bring lasting peace to the Near-East remains unanswered, the film takes a clear stand in exposing the endless cycle of violence and counter-violence, of action and reaction, of murder and retaliation, as what it really is: a dead-end political position, that has proven for several decades to incite nothing but further ignorance and escalation, rather than encouraging a coexistence, with peace and respect between the two cultures.
“Paradise Now” is a gripping human drama in front of the explosive political background of the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict. Well worth seeing.
Kais Nashif and Ali Suliman as Said and Khaled in Hany Abu-Assad's "Paradise Now" (2005)
