Educational Media Reviews Online

Winner of the Audience Award for Best Documentary at the Arab Screen Independent Film Festival in London and First Prize at the first International Human Rights Film Festival in Ramallah and Tel Aviv, this documentary about the life and work of the gifted and provocative cartoonist Naji Al-Ali is worthy of any library's collection, but is especially appropriate for college and university libraries that support programs in politics, Middle Eastern studies and the arts. The video does not solve the mystery of who assassinated Naji in 1987, but it does explore the possible motives of his enemies.

From Naji's childhood as a Palestinian refugee in Lebanon through his days in Kuwait and Beirut and his eventual exile in London, the viewer witnesses his struggle to expose the cause of his people's suffering through satirical, poignant and scathing drawings depicting political figures and the consequences of their actions. These drawings, published in newspapers like Al Safir, spoke to both the educated and the illiterate. Journalist Mohammed Mashmushi sheds light on the significance of Naji's trademark character, Hanzalah, who appears in every cartoon with his back to the audience, a silent witness. British-Iraqi filmmaker Kasim Abid provides insight into Naji's reality by including wartime footage and on-location shots in Lebanon, Palestine and London. These scenes are seamlessly edited alongside commentary by fellow journalists, poets, a former friend and jail mate, and Naji's widow, Widad. Israeli journalist Dr. Amnon Kepeliuk, of B'Tselem, the information center for Human Rights in occupied territories, talks briefly about the violence between Israel and Arab countries in 1967 and 1982. English subtitles are provided for viewers who do not understand Arabic.

Abid's film commemorates the life of a man who lived according to his ideals and never forgot his people, even when he was among the highest paid journalists in the Arab world. Naji lives on through his cartoons, and the video makes it possible to share this controversial artwork with a new audience, despite persistent attempts at censorship. Highly Recommended.