Educational Media Reviews Online

Saul Landau’s thirty minute documentary depicts the very human side of a contemporary Arab society that embraces its traditions and its modernity, quite a different view from the war-torn clips we’ve grown accustomed to seeing on the evening news. Landau cuts easily from an interesting look into a barbershop where only Aramaic is spoken to man-on-the-street reactions to the war in Iraq and female professionals discussing women’s rights. More on-the-street interviews and a personal tour of the director’s own birthplace in the Golan Heights give this documentary a very folksy, often home movie look. Landau asserts that Syria, sandwiched between Iraq and Israel, is an unlikely secure haven where both Muslims and Christians are treated the same. According to the CIA Factbook, ten percent of Syrians are Christians. Landau’s shots of every day Syrian life seem to support a peaceful co-existence between the various religious sects. There is a brief recap of the Golan Heights conflict, as well as a quick look at the ruling Al-Asad family, the thousands of Palestinian refugees in Damascus and Syria’s relationship with the West. The film ends on a positive, “the children are our future” note but a group of children in Damascus flashing peace signs seems a bit contrived.

This film is in Arabic, some Aramaic and English with English subtitles. The continued use of English subtitles when the subjects are clearly speaking English is clunky and distracting. This film is recommended with reservations. Although it shows a very fresh and different side of Arab life than is typically portrayed by the media, it leaves you needing more modern historical context to jumpstart any meaningful discussion.