For Sama

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Jorge S 07/31/2019 It is a movie that everybody should see. An unusual take at a brutal war from the perspective of a young woman who is also a new mother. See more 伊 T @LienEd Apr 27 Francis Ford Coppola once said something like this about anti-war films. "I always thought the perfect anti-war film would be a story in Iraq about a family who were going to have their daughter be married, and different relatives were going to come to the wedding. The people manage to come, maybe there’d be some dangers, but no one would get blown up, nobody would get hurt. They would dance at the wedding. That would be an anti-war film. An anti-war film cannot glorify war..." Part of what makes For Sama a unique piece of anti-war media is its constant reminder of the fragility of humanity, the transience of joy within turmoil. Unlike a traditional war film which too often follows in the footsteps of white soldiers, whose alien gaze is irreverent to anything they see in the west asian landscape. Through the affected perspective of Waab, we see the collapse of normality, the reassertion of normality, and its own fragility in conflict, thus referring to Copolla. See more Fong Kok Hoong F @RT29722865 07/02/2021 This Oscar nominee for Best Documentary Feature lacerates hearts with images of children, dead and suffering, blanketed in ash and blood as female director Waad Al-Kateab endeavors to capture on video for her infant daughter the bravery of Aleppo civilians against the Assad regime's cannonade during the Syrian civil war in 2016. See more William L @RT77267842 02/11/2021 An incredible documentary. Growing up in the United States, real war has been a borderline alien experience for decades. People see it in film, romantacize it, view it through the lens of a political administration, but there hasn't been a real threat of domestic combat for generations; as a concept, it largely belongs to long-passed generations. Likewise, foreign wars are presented largely as statistics or in broad, remote geopolitical terms, as if those involved were somehow not human, that there suffering somehow is not significant. For Sama forces viewers to confront the reality that terrible conflict is an everyday reality for some, and it does so by demonstrating a universal, heartbreaking humanity within the victims of the conflict. When that child is born in a war-ravaged Aleppo hospital with blue skin and no hint of life, only to be woken by the dedicated efforts of the doctors after harrowing minutes, it is a devastating moment, particularly within the context that it creates. The film is so profound, if I was unaware of the circumstances behind its production I would have immediately assumed that it was a docudrama. I can't recall an objectively better found-footage style documentary; others, like Grey Gardens and Hoop Dreams are shot with an intimate style and follow an evolving storyline, but they are still at their core professional productions made by commercial film crews that set out to document a very particular event that they had previously scouted, vetted, and decided upon. For Sama doesn't feel like that, it has senses of pure violence, danger, and loss that can only originate from a devastating event. A true must-watch. (5/5) See more Leaburn O @RT35452347 12/18/2020 An impressive documentary about an impressive young couple. Amazing how numbed everyone becomes by the constant death and destruction. The absolute state of Aleppo by the time they're leaving is incredible. If ever there was an anti-war film this inadvertently is it. Being on the ground through the siege showcases the truth of war. There's no glamour, it's just pure misery and suffering. See more 10/17/2020 One of the most important movies made in decades. It is horrible how the debate around refugees tend to de-humanize people who have fled from their homes. In essence, this movie genuinely and affectionately shows their struggle. Everyone should see this. See more Read all reviews

For Sama

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