Can any film made about the Israel/Palestine divide remain unpolitical? When one of the greatest ethical dilemmas in the world serves as backdrop for a story of two flawed families the results are, unsurprisingly, going to depend on the viewer’s sympathy. The second feature from Palestinian filmmaker Muayad Alayan weaves the audience around a series of bad yet understandable decisions, twisting our mood and playing on our own flaws. Based loosely on a true story, The Reports on Sarah & Saleem is a drama of complex and shifting care.
Saleem (Adeeb Safadi) and Sarah (Sivane Kretchner) are having an affair. With a heavily pregnant wife (Maisa Abd Elhadi), Arabic delivery driver Saleem seems to want one last flash of indulgence before fatherhood changes his life. Israeli Sarah owns a bakery where Saleem delivers to. She clings to anything that will bring a spark back into her life as she juggles a young daughter and a proud husband in the Israeli army (Ishai Golan). As one misunderstanding snowballs into another, these two couples are thrown into disrepair as human error and Jerusalem politics corrupt any hope of normal life returning.
Drawing comparisons to Iranian master Asghar Farhadi, who also explores complex situations and makes sure that every character’s point of view is considered, Alayan has created a compelling film with few easy answers. Trying to unwrap the perpetually complex political situation in Jerusalem is tricky enough; when human desire is added it becomes almost impossible to take sides, although some are inevitably more sympathetic than others.
This story gravitates around four of the year’s best performances. Every person here is understandable in their actions; their various rages and politics would likely come to any of us born into their circumstances. The beautiful Sivane Kretchner stands out in particular; Sarah simply wants enjoyment back into her life. The responsibility of her daughter and a fiercely Zionist husband don’t make for happy times.
As Eurovision was met with boycotts and both sides of the conflict becoming ever more radicalised, Israel and Palestine conflict continues to teeter on the edge of a Third Intifada. Whether that happens is anyone’s guess but the situation can’t continue as it currently is. While avoiding any major political statements, the backdrop of the occupied city adds layers of intrigue to Rami Musa Alayan’s script, showing how politics twist and turn simple human mistakes into public anger. Jewish arrogance and Arabic anger seem to poison any hope for peace in this region. Each one of these characters knows it.
While the message might be a little simplistic – given what it’s built about is anything but – The Reports on Sarah & Saleem is yet another complex and compelling film to reach our screens from the Middle East. This is the kind of film made for adults that any lover of complex human drama will love.
The Reports on Sarah & Saleem is in selected cinemas from 23rd May through Hi Gloss Entertainment.
