Quickcard Review Ajami

Directed by:  Scandar Copti, Yaron Shani Cast: Shahir Kabaha, Ibrahim Frege, Eran Naim Running Time: 2 hrs Rating: unrated

COMPLETE COVERAGE - 33rd Portland International Film Festival Country: Israel

PLOT: Palestinians' and Israelis' lives intersect, usually in violent ways, in an interracial neighborhood in Tel Aviv, Israel.

WHO'S IT FOR? This nominee for the Best Foreign Feature Oscar is Israel's answer to Pulp Fiction.

OVERALL

Ajami sort of confounded my expectations.  I was expecting a more linear film, which this isn't.  First-time filmmakers Copti and Shani were definitely influenced by Tarantino to create their elliptical narrative.  Like Pulp Fiction, the film is divided into chapters that focus on different characters, all of whom ebb and flow into one another's lives.  Also both films deal heavily with drugs and violence and the consequences of messing with either.  But from there, the paths diverge as Ajami takes a much more serious turn, showing the consequences of the dangerous decisions it's young characters make.

The film begins with a drive-by shooting, in which Omar (Kabaha) was the intended target; not for something he had done, but to take revenge against his Uncle who shot the wrong person.  Kabaha plays Omar with a mix of determination and innocence.  He's in over his head and knows it, but also doesn't seem to know of a way out.  Most of the fathers in this film are absent or incapacitated in some way, leaving young men to make decisions they lack the maturity to deal with.  As head of his family, it's Omar's job to make sure his mother, grandfather, brother and sister survive the hit that's been put on them as a result of his uncle's bad decision.  Desperate to pay off the clan intent on killing him, he becomes involved in crime.

I don't wish to say more, part of the fun of watching this film is filling in the gaps in each story, watching how perception differs with different viewpoints.  These first-time filmmakers did a great job, and though I don't know if they'll win, I'm really interested to see what else they do in the future.  Ajami tells the story of people living half a world away in a country that seems like a war zone.  Still, despite the violence, the characters seem like good kids in a bad situation.  They seem like young people in any country, which ups the drama and makes the film that much more poignant.

FINAL SCORE: 7/10