“The sky was perfect blue; the day was wonderful, and the olive harvest was generous.” These are the first sentences that “Adam” is reading to “The Teacher” of a class in Palestine. Opening with profound music, The Teacher cruises us through the small village stretched out beneath the tranquility of olive trees dancing with the wind and the threat of Israeli soldiers guarding the roads meticulously to protect the land against any hostilities.
Farah Nabulsi, a British-Palestinian filmmaker whose directorial debut The Present was nominated for and won the BAFTA Award for Best Short Film, is currently showcasing her film The Teacher at the third edition of the Red Sea Film Festival in Jeddah. The film features the brilliant Saleh Bakr in the role of the village teacher, who delivers an impressive narration.
In the midst of unrest in the West Bank, The Teacher follows Basem (Saleh Bakri), a Palestinian educator who serves as a parent figure to two of his pupils, Yacoub and Adam (Muhammad Abed Elrahman). After encountering Lisa (Imogen Poots), a British volunteer worker, Basem finds it difficult to balance his arduous political resistance posture and his emotional assistance to Yacoub and Adam with the possibility of developing a romantic partnership. Commencing the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, the narrative provides an intimate look at the lives of individuals in the region.
“Although I was born, raised, and educated in the United Kingdom, my blood and heritage are very much Palestinian, and my recent travels to occupied and colonized Palestine have opened my eyes to the systemic and institutionalized injustice and discrimination that is occurring there.” Nabulsi said this in a statement.
The teacher, an enduring emblem of forbearance, empathy, and counsel, is presently engaged in a desperate effort to obtain justice for the Palestinian people, who endure daily strife regarding the protection of their homes, families, and routine existence. In a conflict with an Israeli, one of two brothers, Adam and Yacoub, who complemented one another in both spirit and form, perishes. The Teacher assists Adam and his mother in their endeavor to initiate legal proceedings against Yacoub’s Murder. However, the educator is yet another casualty of the ceaseless conflict in Palestine.
Saleh Bakri, the talented and versatile Israeli actor known for his impressive performances in film, television, and theater, has appeared in a variety of Palestinian films, such as The Band’s Visit (2007), Salt of This Sea (2008), and The Blue Caftan (2022). The Israeli stage and film actor, who is also the son of film director and actor Mohammad Bakri, in The Teacher does more than simply perform in films. The complex features of friendship, love, and compassion, mixed with the huge amount of anger, revenge, and resilience, all combined with each other to make Basem plausible for the audiences. His vulnerability in relation to Lisa (Imogen Poots) while talking about Mahmoud Darwish’s poetry and his toughness discussing with Adam to fight against occupation and for justice are phenomenally well depicted. He is familiar to many of us who have had the unbearable burden of injustice in life. His award for outstanding actor at the Red Sea Film Festival for The Teacher is well-deserved. It is difficult to conceive of an alternative actor for the Basem role.
The Teacher benefits from insightful cinematography as well. One aspect that stands out in the film’s cinematography is the use of lighting. The cinematographer employs various lighting techniques to create contrasting moods and evoke specific emotions throughout the narrative. For instance, warm and soft lighting is often used during tender moments, emphasizing the interpersonal connections between characters. In contrast, dim and stark lighting is used to enhance the tension and evoke a sense of oppression in more dramatic or critical scenes.
The Teacher is more than just a film. Based on real events, Nabulsi unravels the buried resentment under the land of Palestine – the circle of revenge that seems to never end. As if taking hostage one Israeli or some to deal with authorities to free many Palestinians under detention is not that strange for the audiences anymore.
As we see in the media, these days the war in Palestine has reached its climax with no control from authorities around the world. The Middle East has suffered from oppression, day in and day out, throughout history, and cinema has a mission to bring it out in the form of narration. Let us say, The Teacher did it dramatically well.
© 2020-2023. UniversalCinema Mag.
Thank you for helping out, excellent info. “I have witnessed the softening of the hardest of hearts by a simple smile.” by Goldie Hawn.