The Teacher

The myriad challenges of daily living in the Occupied Palestinian Territories of Gaza and the West Bank have increasingly become the subject of documentary and narrative features in recent years, chronicling the many hardships local residents face in just getting by. These films have collectively addressed an array of subjects, such as the encroachment of Israeli settlements, capricious residential demolition orders, constant and harsh government scrutiny and deferred justice for Palestinians. And all of these issues are now explored in this debut offering from writer-director Farah Nabulsi. Loosely inspired by true events, the film follows the complicated life of West Bank high school English teacher Basem El-Saleh (Saleh Bakri), a man beset by a troubled past (presented in flashbacks) and a genuine desire to help his students live better lives (most notably brothers Adam (Muhammad Abed Elrahman) and Yacoub (Mahmoud Bakri)) while clandestinely maintaining his commitment to his people's political resistance movement. At the same time, by contrast, Basem also wrestles with his budding romantic feelings for Lisa (Imogen Poots), a compassionate English transplant who works as a youth counselor at his school. On the surface, this combination of narrative elements would seem to provide the makings of an engaging story, but the presentation of Basem's often-conflicted life often feels somewhat clumsy, disjointed and meandering, as if the picture doesn't always know what direction it wants to take. In the process, it frequently feels like it's systematically ticking off items to be addressed from a checklist of issues commonly faced by the Palestinian population under Israeli occupation. What's more, the film's romantic storyline is somewhat overplayed, often drawing audience attention away from its more relevant story elements. In short, the execution here leaves something to be desired. This is not to suggest that the issues probed here are unimportant; they most certainly are significant. However, their handling here regularly feels awkward, leaving viewers wondering how (or if) everything will eventually tie together in the end. Consequently, "The Teacher" plays like a release that could have benefitted from some scrutinous script revisions and more judicious film editing to make for a more tightly focused finished product. The plight of the Palestinians is nothing to be minimized or marginalized, but, if movies are to help raise awareness of their circumstances, the vehicles used for doing so should do better justice to their situation than what's apparent in this release.

"Adam" (Muhammad Abed Elrahman) and his recently incarcerated brother "Yacoub" (Mahmoud Bakri) are facing the compulsory demolition of their home to facilitate the arrival of new Israeli settlers and an altercation sees the latter lad killed and the former bent of revenge. His teacher "Basem" (Saleh Bakri) and a visiting volunteer "Lisa" (Imogen Poots) try to intervene to stop him doing anything stupid, and insist that they follow legal process. Well it's fairly clear that that isn't going to deliver very much, but as the teacher and the volunteer start to become a little more familiar with each other, we also realise it's equally clear that "Basem" is a little more hands-on with the resistance than his public persona might suggest. Indeed, when he becomes actively embroiled in the search for a kidnapped Israeli soldier of American parentage, his relationship with both the audience and the increasingly frustrated youth becomes rather different. It's really quite a touching story, this one. Not in an overly sentimental way, but in a manner that illustrates clearly how people feel when they are wronged and then failed by a judicial system that is institutionally stacked against them. State sponsored indifference and cruelty coupled with a general sense of lawlessness (on both sides) potently fuels generations of hatred and mistrust and here we see just how it readily perpetuates long-held feelings of anger and loathing. The production looks grimly authentic, and both both Poots and Bakri deliver well but it's really the effort from the young Elrahman that stands out. Initially a decent and calming influence on his more impetuous brother, circumstances force him to become something that he might not have otherwise been. Once on that course, is he beyond any restraining from taking a journey down a very black brick road? The inclusion of the searching US parents - mainly Stanley Townsend as the father, serves to remind us that there are two sides to the story and that brutality isn't just a tool reserved for whomsoever might appear the oppressor here, and as the story concludes it does so as it starts, amidst an environment of uncertainty and fear whilst ruins pile up around those whose only real goal is to live in peace amongst the olive groves their families have harvested for centuries. It's a powerful drama that only goes to prove how much easier it is to destroy than to build.

Saleh Bakri's performance as the teacher is outstanding. The unbearable heaviness and oppression faced by Palestinians living under occupation is cushioned by his almost meditative demeanor. While people around him express rage and rail at the injustices, he does his best to keep them focused on resisting and refusing to succumb to the basic human instinct of revenge. This film is a snapshot of what Palestinians endure on a daily basis and while it is hard to watch at times, there is a message of hope in the face of adversity. Full marks to the director, story arc, filming and cast. If you only see one film about Palestine this year, this is the one to watch.

This film floored me. I left the cinema both feeling the devastating hopelessness of the Teacher's life story, and yet my heart was filled with hope at the courage, hope and resilience he had.

The story of Palestine is filled with repeat patterns, and the life of this teacher is no different. With a few burdens and baggage of his own he finds himself embroiled in the unfolding tragedy of a young boy who loses his brother in scuffle with a pack of settlers. The teacher mentors this boy and ultimately ends up with a choice to make right some of his own demons.

The story is beautifully told and narrates the complex struggles of the situation in a profoundly elegant manner. It's a story of incredible loss, courage, love, tragedy, regret second chances and sacrifice. The score pays a prefect compliment to the film in its haunting, beautiful simplicity. A true film for the ages, this one hit a home run for me.