WAJIB + Q&A with director Annemarie Jacir and curator Joseph Fahim
Annemarie Jacir | Palestine | 2017 | 96 min
Director Annemarie Jacir announces a new chapter of Palestinian cinema with her sensitively realized third feature. Her road movie stars veteran Palestinian thespian Mohammed Bakri in the role of a teacher, known and respected within his community, who embarks on a journey across Nazareth with his estranged architect son (played by Bakri’s real-life son, Saleh) to hand-deliver the wedding invitations for his daughter, as is the tradition. Carried by pitch-perfect performances by the highly charismatic Bakris, Jacir’s best film to date is a nuanced portrait of generational disconnect; of fading idealism; of open family wounds. Most of all, it’s a story of survival, delivered with charm, compassion and palpable love.