DesertTalkies Film Reviews!

  Teta, Alf Marra [2010] Starring: Teta Fatima, Mahmoud Kabbour, Fatima el Ghoul, Eva Sayre Direction by Mahmoud Kaabour  Language: Arabic After watching this, I finally understand what Fairuz is talking about when she sings 'Le Beirut'. All the vivacity and energy of Beirut came through the character of Teta in this lovely documentary.  As is the case with any sort of biographical documentary, the character of Teta was so incredibly cute. Slightly judgmental, no nonsense, and sentimental, she really did capture my heart. And that is a credit to the filmmaker: he managed to so beautifully bring together all the elements of Teta's personality, capturing both her abrasive and lowkey sides.  It is very rarely that I see love in a movie, where I can see how the filmmaker has involved themselves personally with the stories they try to create. This documentary had all of this and more. It helped that the filmmaker was directly related to the Teta in the documentary. As suc...

Wonka [2023] Starring: Timothee C halamet, Rowan Atkinson, Hugh Grant Direction by Paul King Language: Arabic I'm going to preface this by saying that there was a brief Wonka backstory that was outlined in the 'Charlie and the Chocolate Factory' (CATCF) movie. That went against this story. But it was fine - I am totally willing to accept this version of Wonka's story because it was just better.  The Dune trailer came on before the movie, and it hit me like an epiphany. Timothee Chalamet may be the most versatile actor of this generation: whether it was his portrayal of a nervous, quiet Elio in 'Call Me By Your Name', or the outgoing, hopeful, and eccentric character which is 'Wonka', he really is a chameleon. He embraced the role of Wonka phenomenally - a little offbeat but full of character and energy, he shined throughout the movie. You're looking at a Chalamet fan here.  I didn't watch the trailer of the movie before I came to watch it, so all...

Alam [2022] Starring: Sereen Khass, Saleh Bakri, Mohammad Karaki Direction by Firas Khoury Language: Arabic I saw this movie in October, but deleted the original review I posted. So I will start this one with a disclaimer. As someone who is an objective viewer of movies, I would like to remain strictly apolitical when talking about this one. With the intensity of recent events in the Gaza Strip, I don't want this blog to be a vessel through which more hate is sparked.  In the UAE, there are large numbers of Palestinians, and few Israelis. Because of the greater Palestinian influence, there is a greater opportunity to watch Palestinian films: I have, to this day, not seen Hebrew movies come to my local cinemas.  This movie was an interesting one, and looking back on watching it, I definitely have mixed feelings. But I'll start with a positive. I see film as being a fitting medium for promoting national identity and a sense of pride. As such, the fact that a country such as Pale...