Omar (film)
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Film poster
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| Directed by | Hany Abu-Assad |
| Produced by | Hany Abu-Assad Waleed Zuaiter David Gerson |
| Written by | Hany Abu-Assad |
| Starring | Adam Bakri Waleed Zuaiter Leem Lubany |
| Cinematography | Ehab Assal |
| Edited by | Martin Brinkler Eyas Salman |
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Release dates
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Running time
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96 minutes |
| Country | Palestine |
| Language | Arabic |
Omar (Arabic: عمر) is a 2013 Palestinian drama film directed by Hany Abu-Assad. It was screened in the Un Certain Regard section at the 2013 Cannes Film Festival[1] where it won the Special Jury Prize.[2] It was shown at the 2013 Toronto International Film Festival.[3] The film has been selected as the Palestinian entry for the Best Foreign Language Film at the 86th Academy Awards,[4] and was among the five finalists.[5] It also won Best Feature Film at the 2013 Asian Pacific Screen Awards.[6] The film was screened at the United Nations in New York on 1 May 2014.[7]
Contents
Plot
Omar (Adam Bakri) is a Palestinian baker who frequently climbs the West Bank barrier to visit his lover Nadia (Leem Lubany), a high-school girl whom he intends to marry. After being beaten and humiliated by a group of Israeli soldiers, Omar and his childhood friends Tarek (Eyad Hourani) and Amjad (Samer Bisharat) stage an attack on an Israeli checkpoint. During the attack, Amjad shoots and kills an Israeli soldier. Later, Omar and his friends are subsequently pursued by the Israeli authorities. During the pursuit, Omar is captured and imprisoned by the Israeli authorities. Facing a lengthy prison term, Omar is forcibly coerced by an Israeli agent named Rami (Waleed Zuaiter) into working as a double agent for the Israeli authorities. Agent Rami secures Omar's release in exchange for the latter bringing Tarek to the authorities.
Due to his early release, Omar is stigmatized by many in his community as a suspected collaborator. Omar's predicament is further complicated by the fact that his lover Nadia is Tarek's sister. Due to Omar's delays in keeping his side of the bargain, he is arrested again by the Israeli authorities. During his imprisonment, he makes a second deal with Agent Rami in order to find out who is betraying the Palestinian militants. Omar later learns that his friend Amjad is the mole. When confronted, Amjad confesses that Nadia is pregnant with his child and that the Israelis had used that to blackmail him into working for them. Omar forces Amjad to confess to Tarek. During an ensuing struggle between the three men, Tarek is killed when his gun accidentally goes off. With the help of Agent Rami, Omar and Amjad managed to hide their involvement in Tarek's death.
Two years later, Omar visits Nadia and finds he was totally betrayed by Amjad who was not having an affair with Nadia and is now married to her with two children. She still loves him and finds Amjad did not deliver letters she wrote to him before marriage.Then he is revisited by Agent Rami who attempts to coerce him into killing another ringleader. By this stage, Nadia has abandoned her studies and become a homestay mother to two young children. During a meeting with Agent Rami, Omar tricks the former into giving him a gun under the pretext of killing Amjad. Omar instead uses the gun to kill Agent Rami as an easy way out, but the outcome of Amjad is left unclear.[8]
Cast
- Adam Bakri as Omar
- Eyad Hourani as Tarek
- Samer Bisharat as Amjad
- Waleed Zuaiter as Agent Rami
- Leem Lubany as Nadia
- Baher Agbariya as Prison Guard #1
- Majd Bitar as Tarek's Friend
- Walid Abed Elsalam as Leader at the Funeral
- David Gerson as Prison Guard #2
- Anna Maria Hawa as Abeer Omar's Sister
- Laura Hawa as Nurse
- Ihab Jadallah as Prisoner in Yard
- Nael Kanj as Rami's Agent #1
- Tarik Kopty as Tarek's Father
- Adi Krayem as Soldier
- Doraid Liddawi as Soldier
- Eli Rezik as Prison Guard #3
- Yousef 'Joe' Sweid as Torturer
- Ziyad Jarjoura as Amer Omar's Brother
Production
Director Hany Abu-Assad describes putting together the idea of the film in one night, writing the structure of the story in four hours and writing the script in four days.[9] After a year of securing finance, filming began at the end of 2012 and took place mainly in Nazareth (Israel), Nablus and the Far'a refugee camp.[10][11]
Waleed Zuaiter managed to secure the $2m budget for the film, 5% of which came from Enjaaz, the post-production fund of Dubai International Film Festival and the remainder from Palestinians.[12]
Distribution
Adopt Films acquired all U.S. rights to Omar after its premier at the Cannes Film Festival.[13] UK distribution rights was acquired by Soda Pictures[14] and distribution rights in France was sold to Pretty Pictures.[15]
Awards
| Award/Festival | Category | Winner/Nominee | Won |
|---|---|---|---|
| Academy Awards | Best Foreign Language Film | Hany Abu-Assad | Nominated |
| American Film Institute Fest | Grand Jury Prize | Hany Abu-Assad | Nominated |
| Asian Pacific Screen Awards | Best Feature Film | Hany Abu-Assad, Waleed Zuaiter | Won |
| Best Performance by an Actor | Adam Bakri | Nominated | |
| Achievement In Cinematography | Ehab Assal | Nominated | |
| Camerimage[1] | The Silver Frog Prize for Best Cinematography | Ehab Assal | Won |
| Cannes Film Festival | Un Certain Regard Jury Prize | Hany Abu-Assad, Waleed Zuaiter | Won |
| Carthage Film Festival | Tanit d'or | Won | |
| Dubai International Film Festival[16] | Muhr Arab Best Director Award | Hany Abu-Assad | Won |
| Muhr Best Film | Waleed Zuaiter | Won | |
| Ghent International Film Festival[2] | Youth Jury Award Best Film | Hany Abu-Assad | Won |
| Fajr International Film Festival[3] | Crystal Simorgh Prize for Best Direction | Hany Abu-Assad | Won |
| New York Film Festival | Grand Marnier Fellowship Award - Best Film | Nominated | |
| Palm Springs International Film Festival | Best Foreign Language Film | Nominated | |
| Tromsø International Film Festival[4] | The Norwegian Peace Film Award | Hany Abu-Assad | Won |
See also
- List of submissions to the 86th Academy Awards for Best Foreign Language Film
- List of Palestinian submissions for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film
References
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- ↑ screendaily.com
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