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28 out of 38 people found the following review useful: Bitter ironies of occupation, 29 March 2003 Author: Chris Knipp from Berkeley, California
"Divine Intervention," or" A Godlike Hand," consists of many vignettes which are Tati-esque "sans paroles" cartoons (they call them "bidoon ta'leeq" in Arabic, without comment), or comic strips actually, since scenes keep returning with slight changes and end with implied punch lines.The first half focuses on individuals in Jerusalem, the last on Suleiman himself, his father (Nayef Fahoum Daher), and his girlfriend (Manal Khader). His girlfriend disappears and his father dies. The director plays like the sad-faced Buster Keaton doing "Waiting for Godot." He's also been compared to Hal Hartley and Groucho Marx and Yiddish humor, but what we need to remember is that this is a series of disjointed cartoons. Suleiman's aim is not to tell a story but to delineate with bitter, detached irony the miseries and absurdities of Palestinian life under Israeli occupation. In doing so he has had full access to a large Israeli cast, including actual or former IDF border guards.The movie was originally nominated for the Oscar for Best Foreign Film -- and then taken off the list because Palestine 'is not a legitimate nation.' That's what Golda Meir used to say; the Motion Picture Academy is more backward than the judges at Cannes, which gave Suleiman two jury prizes. Politics are different in the USA, as observers of world events are currently all too well aware, and "Divine Intervention" is unlikely to be as well appreciated in America as in Europe. American and English reviews have frequently focused on the movie's weaknesses and overlooked its elegance and restrained passion.Indeed there are subtleties that will elude an audience from outside Israel. I'm told that the green envelopes "E.S.'s" father is opening are government mail, whatever you get from different ministries and departments, and the big blue envelope pertains to income tax. It just looked like junk mail to me. In another sequence something happened with the owner of a house who was the object of fire bombings, but I didn't follow the outcome.Suleiman's black images of Israeli occupation resemble the humor of the concentration camp; the occupation is like a summery, open air detention center, the Jews giving back what they got under the Nazis to the people they got their land from. The final aim is still extermination and removal of a people.The detachment of Suleiman's view, and perhaps the warped sensibilities that repression and frustration cause, are reflected in the meanness and feuding he depicts as existing daily among the Palestinians themselves and their contacts with Israelis; the alienation in the constant sound of Hebrew in the ears of Arabic speakers. Neighbors throw garbage in each other's yards, puncture a boy's lost soccer ball before returning it; drive along greeting acquaintances and cursing them under their breath.Between Jerusalem, where E.S. lives, and Ramallah, where his girlfriend is, lies one of the infamous checkpoints: the lovers' separation causes them to meet at a vacant lot next to it. They stare ahead with blank sadness, twining their hands together. Their lovemaking is reduced to that tiny gesture. They sit impassively for hours, as Palestinians must sit in car queues for hours at the checkpoints. Sometimes Suleiman shifts to fantasy: an apricot pit E.S. flips out his car window blows up a tank, or a pretty girl (his girlfriend?) in tight clothes leaves her car, and approaches the elevated observation cabin of a checkpoint, to the consternation and arousal of the young Israeli guards. She walks past, and the whole observation cabin magically disintegrates. (These two sequences had to be staged and shot in France.)Another time a lively new guard takes over with a megaphone barking commands at Palestinian motorists, stealing a young man's imported leather jacket, ordering others to switch cars, making another sing along with him, humiliating them all, and then suddenly waving the whole line of cars through. The Palestinians are at the mercy of individual personalities, and have only a choice between humiliation and cruelty.E.S.'s father sits in his pajamas having breakfast seemingly for hours opening the mail mentioned above, eating an egg. He smokes a cigarette and then gets up, and falls onto the floor.Hospital scenes follow which emphasize how everybody, patients, doctors and nurses, constantly smokes.Periodically we see Suleiman/E.S. pulling large Post It's off a wall, representing all the little episodes of the movie.In an elaborate sequence toward the end five Israelis do target practice in formation like chorus girls shooting up effigies of a Palestinian woman -- the girlfriend -- wearing a kufia mask. Finally the real woman emerges from behind the one remaining effigy, dodges dozens of bullets, flies into the air transmogrified into a martyr, emits stones that knock down the men, blows them up with grenades, and spins off in the air like a Ninja. This, and the opening sequence in which Arab boys chase and stab a costumed Santa Claus, have been criticized in English-language reviews as too vicious or too fanciful, but they accurately represent the workings of a tormented Palestinian mind.It's important to remember that there's no intention to tell a connected story here; Suleiman is an observer and note-taker. Returned to Jerusalem since 1994, he lived abroad for a decade before that, mostly in New York. Like all Palestinians he is rootless and international, treated like dirt in his native land. The power of his observations is in their coolness and wry humor.For all the explosions, shooting, beatings (of a snake, in one scene) and expressions of hostility, the movie is marked by its distance, stillness, and restraint. People are seen from afar, head on, or from above. Perhaps the most memorable image is the one of E.S. and his girlfriend staring impassively forward for hours at the checkpoint. Passive endurance is the hallmark of Palestinian survival as seen in "Divine Intervention."A highly symbolic scene is the repeated one of a bus stop where one man is standing and another comes and says, "There's no bus," and the first one says, "I know!" This pinpoints the hopeless situation of the whole society.Despite the links with classic movie comedy tradition, Suleiman has a unique and sadder vision. One may or may not find the scenes amusing or entertaining but one does get a sense of the average Palestinian's predicament. Bitter irony and detachment are two of the only ways of dealing with it.
13 out of 20 people found the following review useful: A Beautiful Unconventional Palestinian Film, 9 February 2003 Author: assalehab from NAZARETH
Those of you who are heading the theaters to watch Palestinian film showing refugee camps - bare footed kids with running noses , or poor women weeping miserably over their loved ones who were killed by the Israeli soldiers..... are in for a major disappointment ! Elia Suleiman puts on screen the OTHER Palestinian : the highly sophisticated intellect who is torn between the nothingness of his home town - ghetto like Nazareth , and his almost impossible love life on the Jerusalem - Ramalla checkpoint , watching impotently the daily satiric yet agonizing incidents at the Israeli checkpoint from his car , and time and time again , amidst the harsh reality and killing routine we find him escaping to fantasy , and it is these fantasy dream-like scenes that make the reality of the film .A Palestinian woman goes through the extremely secured Israeli checkpoint and passes to the other side causing the checkpoint tower to collapse . The woman in the film is the all-mighty woman, she is the mother , spouse , and daughter of the Palestinian society who takes matters into her own hands and who makes the whole world to bow and bend in front of her strength . She is the Palestinian Ninja fighter who refuses to be the martyr. She is blown up to a higher level becoming a Jesus like figure ,yet not turning the other cheek but fighting and setting new rules for the other side.The scene is full of contradictions: the highly equipped Israeli commando fighters against the solemn Palestinian who merely fights with stones[bringing to mind the first Intifada],and political symbols such as the map of the Palestinian shape boomerang and the appearance of the Palestinian flag underneath the Israelis feet . The film is funny ,even hilarious, enormously witty ,and the language diverts from direct and realistic to symbolic and surreal. Elia Suleiman fluently speaks both languages ,telling the story - or stories - of thousands of Palestinians and yet telling his own saga, in a voice so hush-hush ,clever ,subtle and so artistic that brilliantly makes this film a masterpiece.Maha Haj-Assal NAZARETH .
5 out of 5 people found the following review useful: A unique allegory of tolerance, 9 December 2008 Author: Aluísio Parondi (nem.freud.explica@gmail.com) from Winooski, Vermont, USA
I would be lying if I said I loved this film. However, writer-director-actor Elia Suleiman created a pretty unique, bizarre allegory of tolerance in Palestine that deserves at least one viewing."Divine Intervention" is composed of a circle of vignettes that vary from "Father Feels Sick" to "I Am Crazy Because I Love You". Using minimalist settings, economic dialogue and bizarre, surreal situations that involve a dying Santa Claus and a female ninja, Elia creates a mosaic of apparently disconnected types and caricatures. His "message" is illustrated in a not so subtle metaphor by the last scene. Even though "Divine Intervention" doesn't always succeed, Suleiman deserves special mention for daring to experiment in a way that most filmmakers are afraid to. Not a bad thing to do. 7/10.
6 out of 7 people found the following review useful: Many People Are Missing The Point, 21 August 2008 Author: Theo Robertson from Isle Of Bute, Scotland
I remember seeing a clip from this film which involved Palestinians at a roadblock having to endure humiliation from the Israeli soldiers manning it . The scene then cuts to the Palestinian protagonist stopping his car beside a Jewish settler . I was expecting something to happen at this point but nothing did and decided to catch DIVINE INTERVENTION when it made an appearance at the Edinburgh filmhouse very recently to see if it made sense in a wider context I'll say one thing about Elia Suleiman and that is he know's how to hook an audience in to a story since this contains a truly memorable opening sequence where a much loved icon meets with some violence which will distress anyone who's hoping for some Christmas gifts . Unfortunately he's unable to continue the momentum of this and we quickly find ourselves in Michaelangelo Antonioni territory . It's been said that both Buster Keaton and Jacques Tati have influenced Suleiman but I believe Antonioni has a far more obvious effect . For example a character offers cigarettes to two other characters who then wave their hands in to shot showing that they are already holding lit cigarettes something the character would have been aware of but not the audience . Other examples would be the exploding tank which seems to have been inspired by ZABRASKIE POINT , or a character continually being told there's no bus as he stands at a bus stop and , but perhaps the most obvious example would be the ending involving a pressure cooker . Antonioni likes to irritate the audience with portent enigmas and Elia Suleiman has done the same here along with a few stylistic nods to Robert Bresson Unfortunately many people on this site and the handful of people in the audience of The Edinburgh Filmhouse seem to have misunderstood DIVINE INTERVENTION somewhat . This was most obvious during the discussion afterwards held by a distinguished epistemological film critic tried to concentrate on the ideas and influences behind the film and kept having the subject changed by useless idiots who were compelled to inform us all they knew about " fascist Israelis " and how the film didn't go far enough in " showing the brutality of the Israeli occupation " . Duh well it's not about the " brutality of the Israeli occupation " - it's about the absurdity of life under occupation and of the wider absurdity of everyday life . If you go and watch this film with a closed mind then you'll fail to understand it . DIVINE INTERVENTION isn't a great film but it's certainly one that can be appreciated by cinephilles rather more than mindless politicised idiots of what ever side of the Middle Eastern fence they're on
6 out of 7 people found the following review useful: surreal, bizarre, wonderful & even a bit touching......, 9 April 2006 Author: TheatreX from Louisville, KY
I'm not truly sure of the "pedigree" on this film as it seems to have been a collaboration between several countries. The basic story though, seems to be two Palestinian lovers that are separated by a army checkpoint who meet on the sly. I guess the city in which this takes place is Jerusalem, and the film also focuses in here and there on little bits of life & society and how it is functioning in such a strange environment. The film begins by a bunch of youths chasing a Santa Claus up a hill in a very non-Christmas kind of setting, cacti, etc. This is chock full of black humor but it's very sad in many ways too. There are some very memorable scenes, such as a woman walking through the checkpoint like she owns the place, despite the fact that all the guards have their machine guns trained on her. She lifts her sun glasses and gives them "the look" (you'll see that "look" a couple more times in the film) and they let her just stalk on by, after which their guard tower collapses. Also memorable is a group of men shooting at targets on a practice range, the targets being Muslim women, and the men perform choreographed moves while shooting that must be seen to be believed. A woman emerges from the last standing target and takes revenge on the men in ways that ALSO have to be seen to be believed, and she spins into the air and takes out a helicopter as well. The main man of the story (who I guess is also the director) has a bit of a tragedy going on with his father who is in the hospital due to a heart attack. This is a very interesting hospital as the patients in the cardiac ward can disconnect their monitoring equipment to go take a smoke break. This is a rather stunning film and probably my first from this part of the world. It's amazing to me that someone is able to derive humor from this situation and have it come off so well. This almost reminds me in some ways of Jacques Tati films with the little skits within the whole of the movie that are without dialog but are almost like blackout sketches, I guess, I suppose I'm not doing what I'm trying to describe any real justice. But trust me, this is a wonderful film and if you have an open mind you'll probably find it fascinating. 9 out of 10, wow....
9 out of 14 people found the following review useful: a beautiful and complete film about despair, 8 June 2005 Author: mich_new from Israel
a beautifully shot, well thought-through film about the despair of life in the Palestine territories. the arrows of blame are pointing to all directions, making it a complex statement of a dead-end situation.this is a film about life cut off by barriers- physical, psychological, communicational and political- between countries people, lovers and neighbors. and about the yearning to brake through them.through a complex critique of both sides of the conflict, the viewer is turned into a silent witness of oppression corruption and decay.it's visual far exceeding previous films originating palestine or israel, each frame is an artwork, symbolic and poetic. a cinematographic pearl. a must-see.
11 out of 18 people found the following review useful: Absurd, hilarious and strongly significant, 20 February 2003 Author: Mizz_dynamitee from London
Amazing..A film that has a crucial twist to what is happening in Israel today.Two tribes at each others throat. However this isn't your usual mainstream war type, social issues, machine gun shoot type film. This is a film of quality.. Scenes are cut, a lot is left for the audience to tie up and conclude.. Directing at its best.Powerful visions and photography.You'll laugh.. but as the scene stays fix on the sketch.. you start thinking of the REAL message the director is giving you and believe you stop laughing.I will definitely watch it again.. the balloon, the football, the Palestinian lady walking past and creating havoc to the Israeli border, the scene with the hands... all sketches that are unforgettable! Very symbolic...
13 out of 22 people found the following review useful: Wha?, 14 May 2003 Author: denise from Dallas, Tx
Like others who have commented on this film, I, too, cannot stop thinking about it... thinking about how I was lured to the theater by a very good trailer that was crafted, I'm sure, to appeal to my interest in the Palestinian/Israeli conflict, my concerns with world affairs and other cultures. I was used!From beginning to end, a chain of weak metaphors... Nothing Divine - no intervention. Pure tedium.Best metaphor? At the very end, a pressure cooker - and the old lady saying "Turn it off."I can't remember being this disappointed - ever - in a movie that I was so excited about seeing. I didn't laugh, I didn't cry ... Perhaps I should though; for the potential of all that this subject should have inspired in a truly creative and thoughtful writer/director. For shame.
13 out of 22 people found the following review useful: The only way to treat this subject is laughing at it!!, 12 January 2003 Author: Rob from Deventer, Netherlands
The problem in the Middle East is very complex and not black & white. To make a film about the ongoing war between two tribes who have the same forefathers and have to share a piece of land is not easy!! The only way, in my opinion, to make a film about it, is to make it light and transparent. And that is exactly what Elia Suleiman does. Absurd scenes (the Palestinian beauty who turns into a Ninja and destroy the acrobatic Israeli marksmen), but also very subtil stories about Palestinians who make life miserable for each other in the Occupied terretories. He uses several biblical symbols (eating eggs, killing a snake) and uses repetition to show how life gets by when you're living like subhumans. My cup of tea!!
3 out of 3 people found the following review useful: If Jaques Tati and Luis Bunuel had a child, this is the film he'd make, 19 November 2006 Author: bob-frumpet from United States
Brilliant politics mixed mixed with very black, subtle comedy make up this very slightly surreal and funny movie about life and love in Israel.However, I wouldn't recommend this film for everybody, don't watch it if you're looking for an easy movie, it takes a lot of mental energy to really understand this movie, however if you're in the movie for an intellectual treat, its quite fun.This movie has the subtle humor and lack of dialogue of a tati movie with the politics and vignette fashion of a Bunuel.Overall, it's good, yet many of the political references are extremely obscure and the metaphors aren't always clear.
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