Terrorists are protagonists in 'Paradise Now'
Palm Beach Post
Many people would rather not see terrorists humanized, preferring to think of them as crazed monsters who willingly waste their lives for the implied promise of entry to a heaven where virgins await their every need. Those moviegoers would not want to know Said (Kais Nashef) and Khaled (Ali Suliman), two Palestinian garage mechanics enlisted to cross into Israel from the West Bank on assignment as suicide bombers.
Warner Independent Pictures
B+ The verdict: A look at terrorism from the inside, following a fictional suicide bombing case that goes wrong. Director: Hany Abu-Assad On the web |
||
Hardly fanatics, they calmly accept their task and prepare methodically, but things go very wrong for them in Paradise Now, a new low-key thriller that forces us to identify with these two and even root for them to escape this predicament of their own making with their lives.
Director Hany Abu-Assad, an Israeli-born Palestinian, asks us to try and understand hot-headed Khaled, who is angered that his people and their land are occupied by the Israelis, who are perceived in the media as victims.
So Khaled is prepared to turn them into victims, with a bomb pack strapped to his body, which he will detonate in downtown Tel Aviv. Said has more personal, less doctrinaire reasons for such violence, and is beginning to be dissuaded by his girlfriend Suha (Lubna Azabal), who believes the path to peace is the end of terrorism.
Not only does their plan go awry soon after they enter Israel, but Said gets cut off and Khaled has to find him and rescue him. In the course of a suspenseful search, the political rhetoric flies about and the two men's resolve to become martyrs begins to waver.
Abu-Assad manages to get us thinking with this timely story wrapped inside the trappings of an action film. If the prevailing mood of the film is pessimistic, it remains an intriguing document of our times and unexpectedly involving viewing.
Inside AJC.COM
Holiday shopping
Realtime shopping updates for gift bargains in Metro Atlanta. See a deal? Tell everyone!
Weekend Best Bets
International Cat Show, Chante Moore, Magical Night of Lights, chef cook-offs and more!
Obama Inauguration
Travelling to D.C. on Jan. 20? Here's everything you need to know for your planning.
Cheap Travel
No need to drop big bucks. Here are 25 offerings for cruise, hotel and fall travel packages.
Top 5 in Atlanta
Skip those drive-thrus. Here are five of best places in Atlanta for a juicy hamburger.
Christmas House
The 2008 edition, with its garlands and wreaths, benefits Alliance Children's Theater.
From the Blogs
-
Radio & TV Talk
-
Movie Talk
-
Atlanta Music Scene
-
ATL Arts
Table Talk
-
American Idol Buzz
11/21: Phil Stacey loses label deal, Kristy Lee Cook begging for recognition
-
Chatter
Best Bets: Indie Folk, Unusual Gifts and the Return of the "Santaland" Elf
-
Misadventures in Atlanta
-
Peach Buzz
-
Social Butterfly
-
Best of the Big A
-
The Newcomer
Best of the Big A
-
Current nominations
-
Current voting
-
Latest winner




