Educational Media Reviews Online

In the past five decades or so, Palestine or Palestinians increasingly came to be associated with images of conflict, war, and terrorism. Equally, films produced about this land and its people often reflect political or historical realities while neglecting to give a human face to the people living there. My Jaffa is an unusual and welcome tale of two ordinary Palestinian families (the Gargours and Araktengies) and their lives before, during, and after the present Palestine-Israel conflict.

The two families alternately tell their stories, transporting us back and forth in time using historical footage and photographs. One learns a little history going back to 1917, with the Declaration of Balfour, to the present state of Jaffa, but only as a backdrop for the central story of the two families, their life in Jaffa, their escape to Beirut, and later to Europe. This film is not designed to provide a detailed history, nor does it present both sides of the present conflict. Many films tell stories of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict: American University Library (http://www.library.american.edu/subject/media/middle_east.html) has one of the best Middle East mediagraphies on the Internet; another example is a book by Dan Cohen and Dawoud El-Alami -- The Palestine-Israeli Conflict: A Beginner’s Guide, which provides a great primer on the issue (1). However, this film does illustrate the human side of the Palestinian people. One sees the families as ordinary people with ordinary hopes, dreams, and desire for peace. Most remember times when Jews and Arabs lived side by side – a tour guide points out an Arab bakery famous for its bread and frequented by Jews.

While Leila Gargour tries to assemble the puzzle of her heritage, Christine Arkatingi speculates about her ancestry possibly being Jewish. Additionally, Joanna Gargour shares her fear of admitting her heritage because “Palestinians are known as terrorists,” and remarks on her displacement as she utters “La fuite! C’est tout ce que je connais” – Escape! That’s all I know. She uses a strong metaphor of a plant uprooted and kept in a glass of water, waiting to be repotted, but never finding the proper land. Ironically, not long ago a Jew might have expressed similar sentiments. At one point in this film, Salim Tamari, a sociologist in Jaffa, reminds us that there is little feeling for Arabs who are remaining Palestine. He explains that people come to see memories of their homeland, not the living. This film reminds us of the living: Jaffa and its people.

The film’s quality is excellent. It is cleverly directed, with beautiful cinematography and great sound. Robert Manthoulis’ use of imagery is particularly powerful as he ends the film with a scene of a tour guide pointing to the only orange tree left in Jaffa, not planted in earth, but rather hanging in the air, awaiting its return to it soil; all the while a song fades with the words “Tell me, shall we return home?” Let me just add that the Tango music used as background to the narrative is impeccable and an especially interesting choice. After all, Tango itself was born from the experience of immigrants to Argentina. Manthoulis successfully reminds us of the human desire for a homeland, freedom, and peace. These are the emotions all refugees carry with them. In times when our minds are loaded with images of war and terror, and our hearts with revenge and anger, this documentary is desperately needed. My Jaffa is highly recommended for school and public libraries with audience levels ranging from junior high to adult. In academic libraries, the film would add balance to existing media coverage. It’s content however, would not be of high value for researchers in the fields of politics or policy.

(1) Reviewed for Library Journal, due to appear in the December 15th issue, 2001.