Jenin, Jenin
Director: Mohamed Bakri
Reviewed by Patrick Harrington "Stop filming will you! What good is your filming when no arab has been able to do anything?"
"Jenin Jenin" (54 minutes) is both moving and depressing. Filmed after the Israeli army's April 2002 attack flattened homes and killed at least 52 Palestinians (the Palestinians themselves claim many more). A questioning bitterness is conveyed by all the Palestinians interviewed in the film. There is also a grim determination. A little girl, who does not seem to be much older than twelve, tells her story filled with hatred and the urge to take revenge. She shouts that the Palestinians will never give up the struggle, that they will keep on producing children who can continue the struggle. A man says simply "This is where I live, this is my land and I have nowhere else to go."
The landscape shows flattened houses and people moving amongst the rubble. One telling moment shows a man lamenting the loss of his uprooted trees, Lemon, Fig, Palm and Olive. Trees that took years to grow, homes that were saved for and built over years. Another man accuses Israeli troops of looting his life-savings. How easy and quick it is to destroy.
What will become of two peoples (Palestinian and Israeli) locked in deadly conflict with war and violence informing their perspectives from a very early age?
Banned in Israel, "Jenin Jenin" is dedicated to Iyad Samudi, the producer of the film, who was shot dead by Israeli soldiers on June 23rd, 2002.
Director: Mohamed Bakri Year: 2002 Time: 54 minutes Produced by: Iyad Samudi and Mohamed Bakri Written by: Mohamed Bakri Edited by: Leandro Pantanella Language: Arabic with English subtitles