When introducing his film at the Berlinale world premiere, director Abdallah Al-Khatib said "What politics is not achieveing today, cinema is." This might have just come from his heart and his experience, but only two days after Wim Wenders said that films shouldn't be political lest filmmakers become politicians (a cowardly comment to say the least), I was sure this comment was taking back the power to protest, resist, argue through cinema. He also said that when your country is living under occupation, you can't just make normal films, because "you have to fight with your cinema." This film does that, and does it with detailed characters and a perfect balance of drama, horror, resistance, and a lot of comedy. Plus, it opens in a video store - well, the shell of one - when a group of Palestinian activists break in through the wall, hammering down a poster for the Algerian liberation movement film Chronicle of the Year of Fire. Best film I've seen at this festival so far and not just because of its powerful and urgent politics, but because it's so damn well made.
