From Ground Zero
Creator: Rashid Masharawi
2024, 152 mins.
Directed by:
Aws Al-Banna,
Ahmed Al-Danf,
Basil Al-Maqousi,
Mustafa Al-Nabih,
Muhammad Alshareef,
Ala Ayob,
Bashar Al Balbisi,
Alaa Damo,
Awad Hana,
Ahmad Hassunah,
Mustafa Kallab,
Satoum Kareem,
Mahdi Karera,
Rabab Khamees,
Khamees Masharawi,
Wissam Moussa,
Tamer Najm,
Abu Hasna Nidaa,
Damo Nidal,
Mahmoud Reema,
Etimad Weshah,
Islam Al Zrieai,
What is heavier more than oppression?
Thanks to Masharawi, 22 short films from Palestinians under horrendous siege in Gaza have come to life, death and a wide audience. For most of us so far away from the, seemingly, never-ending revengeful eradication of anyone existing in the Gaza strip—Israeli enemy or not (of course, most aren’t)—this multifaceted collection is a must-see for those of us lucky enough not to be in harm’s way and all of those wreaking havoc—or much more than getting even—just because both sides of the conflict are brutally ignorant and unwilling as to how to get along with each other.
Truly, as we hear, “the war spared no one”—innocent, guilty, friend or foe.
It’s yet another example of the human race failing on all fronts to truly understand that we are basically all the same, until egos, power (religious and/or political) and wealth get irrevocably in the way of existing.
Those who should see this heartbreaking, hopeful, joyful, devastating compilation of snippets of life, death and existence in a wee strip of land where “only the sea remains” probably never will. For the rest of us, and as difficult as some of the episodes are to watch, it is most certainly required viewing if we are ever to find peaceful coexistence on our current planet in peril—seemingly from all sides. JWR
Anora
Sean Baker
2024, 139 mins.
Never finds or gets to the point
Billed as a comedy/drama “Cinderella Tale”, Baker’s film (he also wrote the script) never evokes a belly laugh, much less any sort of compelling drama. Only the narrative’s inclusion of Russian oligarchs has any resonance with the 21st century. Accordingly, Trump and Musk will likely enjoy it from first frame in a sex club to last hurrah of an intimate one-on-one in grandma’s car.
In the title role, Mikey Madison does her level best to portray the room-by-the-hour sex worker who—by the luck of speaking a smattering of Russian—ends up first bedding, then marrying an oligarch’s randy son. Seemingly, her life switches from seedy struggler to opulent wealth thanks to language chops, and bedroom prowess. As her intended Ivan, (Mark Eydelshteyn has no problem at all stripping down and even learning the fine art of “taking it slow”), but soon fades to blank once his angry-at-the-nuptials parents (Darya Ekamasova easily nasty to the core; Aleksey Serebryakov delights in laughing uproariously at his overbearing wife’s comeuppance) demand an annulment.
Doing their dirty work prior to arrival from Russia to NYC are the vicar/strongman Toros (Karren Karagulia, sputters more than lands his character’s lines) and Igor (Yura Borisov in many ways delivers the film’s best characterization as he morphs from bully with a heart to protector with desires).
Alas, the film never really establishes what it truly wants to be, just as Ivan has no idea who he is or—despite unending wealth—what he wants to become. JWR