Spiralling violence slowly permeates the emotional fabric of Ajami, a fourfold Middle Eastern saga that slowly blends into one monumental story of woe. The film is jointly directed by an Israeli, Yaron Shani, and a Palestinian, Scandar Copti, who prove that though they may be unable to share a country, they are perfectly capable of sharing a movie. It's no coincidence that the film's greatest virtue is its tenacity.
By auditioning locals from Jaffa and arduously rehearsing for ten months, the directorial duo took the time to both adapt the actors to the film and the film to the actors. Each character has a special place in the script, which carefully establishes context for every new face before forging ahead with the final mission: to somehow bring them all together. In Jaffa's Ajami neighbourhood, young Nasri (Fouad Habash) finds himself in trouble when his uncle (Ghassan Ashkar), the proprietor of a humble café, unknowingly wounds a member of a powerful clan who tried to sell him protection. The attempt at retribution fails and mistakenly costs an innocent neighbour his life when, in fact, the intended target was Nasri's older brother Omar (Shahir Kabaha). The only way to survive is to pay their way out.
The traditional clan meeting, a deeply disturbing scene melding greed with religion, leaves Nasri's family deeply in debt and out of options. Meanwhile, Malek (Ibrahim Frege), a teenaged Palestinian from across the border, is putting his money aside for a whole different reason. Illegally employed at a luxurious restaurant, he's hoping to pay off his mother's bone marrow transplant. On the Israeli front, family man and police officer Dando (Eran Naim) is struggling to put his brother's disappearance behind him. Sent on a drug bust, he comes across Binj (Copti), a Palestinian with a Jewish girlfriend who dreams of leaving Ajami behind.
If all this seems a little overwhelming, that's because it is. Dropping you right in the middle of the ocean, Copti and Shani take their time throwing you a life buoy, just because they know that will make their rescue raft seem all the more rewarding. And believe me, it is.
Dimitri Eipides
Scandar Copti is a Palestinian citizen born in Jaffa. He has made several fiction, documentary and experimental short films. His first feature,
Ajami (09, co-director), won the Caméra d'Or – Special Distinction at the Cannes Film Festival.
Yaron Shani is a Jewish filmmaker born in Israel. He studied film at Tel Aviv University.
Ajami (09, co-director), which was awarded the Caméra d'Or – Special Distinction at the Cannes Film Festival, is his feature-directing debut.