User reviews

Quite interesting if complicated storytelling. What's apparent is that this is a well-scripted film. The stories are intersecting and you are regaled by the outcomes of each storyline.

The characters are true to life which make them relatable. These are your characters that populate, well, alleys.

The actors are credible. Those portraying the major characters deliver no-nonsense performances like Ali, Abbas, Lena, Hamadi, Bahaa and Aseel.

Jordan cinema is producing quality pictures which should be a source of pride for Jordanian filmmakers and those involved in the movie industry there. The viewer looks forward to other films worth watching.

Glad to see improvement in Jordanian movies industry, I really liked it, and it's accurate in those places in Amman, I have seen many things like that in front of my eyes in poor east Amman neighborhoods, those who say that it doesn't represent the reality are delusional, they are giving it low rating just because it has swear words and some not family friendly scenes, although you can hear way worse swear words in almost every street in Jordan, and the movie was not meant to be family friendly anyway, it's a Netflix movie, it wasn't produced by Jordan Official TV! Want family friendly stuff? Maybe you should reconsider subscribing to Netflix, also the movie does not even have that amount of inappropriate scenes.

I see that this film as an improvement in Jordanian cinema and opens the way for the production of better works in the future, the film is very good as a start, although they should have worked on the plot more, but I liked the production, directing and accuracy in the dialect.

I liked the character of Hanadi in the movie, Maisa Abd Elhadi is talented, looking forward to see her in more Jordanian movies.

Abbas's character really had more potential, especially that it was played by one of the best actors in Jordan imo (Mondher Rayahneh).

I don't want to write more because I don't want to spoil the events, but in general it was a good movie and I liked it, and I'm glad to see improvements in Jordanian cinema.

Amazing story with powerful and meaningful pay back... Outstanding set design and atmospheres so realistic and well crafted... Textures and surroundings were well chosen... The effort was so clear in all details and aspects of the film.

Great cast and acting with seamless delivery for each character.

Clean solid edits.

Jordan must be proud of this.

Such an important mark for in the cinema industry for this region.

Very well done Great job The Alleys Team Hats off 👏👏👏

This movie represents what really happens in some parts of Amman, I was born and raised there and can relate to a lot of things. The director is highly skilled, lots of plot twists and unexpected events will spin your head around. The attention to the smallest detail is what makes it truly unique, I watched it with some of my foreign friends and they were stunned by the amount of carefully thought details that outlines life out there.

This movie hits home, I left Jordan 8 years ago and it definitely brought back some good & bad memories, great job by the entire staff. A masterpiece! It deservers an award.

Engaging, atmospheric, enjoyable movie. A bit cringe as every lie, sin or intrigue gives rise to worse consequences.... Just enough over the top to bring out the humor and a bit of distance to mitigate some of the violence... But in the end I cared about the characters and thought it was wonderfully acted and directed with an ensemble cast.

Hanadi (Maisa Abd Elhadi) who plays the gangster's right hand woman rises to the occasion and is very powerful and riveting.

Would love to see her do more.

The multiple interwoven storylines were balanced artfully by director Bassel Ghandour.

I'm gonna go watch his Theeb, soon.

Impeccable performance with a great written script and character choices.

The story was captivating from start to finish. The scenes, camera angles, locations chosen to film are so close to reality it was truly a reflection of a Jordanian alley. From the narrow streets to the colloquial accent and the way the characters spoke, each with a specific personality that was very fitting to the role they played. Attention to detail to how each character dressed down to their makeup.

Hats off to the team working on this masterpiece! 👏🏼

Really looking forward to see more of this young rising talent (Basel's) work in the near future.

Well first of all i am Jordanian and some of the scenes are shot in my neighborhood "Jabal Alnatheef" i was among the people to watch it on Netflix because it got released just yesterday. Even my friend Majeed Abu Al-ragheb playing the doctor starting in it . But why the movie is just terrible not because of the clichés and the terrible dialogue but because of its terrible character development and somehow the theme of the story gone missing at the end . Well , of course the same drama in Hollywood can't be applied in Jordan because we are dealing with different context where special effects are not put to use like exploding cars and police chase. However, the director could've created a better story by simply resorting to guide book on how to write stories since he is the writer . The following aspects are the movie sins : 1. The protagonist Ali doesn't change at all because the Alley where he lives in made him into this. But several points about his character that don't make his situation realistic at all. Ali sees Lana everynow and then but how ? Through climbing down the roof and using her window as a mean to enter her room and with the first scene we see him does so in the bright daylight .Therefore, his relationship with Lana should be common knowledge to everybody since the Alley is on everyone's business .but no the director wants to create a drama without paying attention to details like this. Ali's journey doesn't make any sense , his motives of leaving and his plan are just plain terrible because his decision of robbing Abbas was only there when he was forced to do so .and you can just think about the story more to find out that his character is badly written and even a 5 years old can come up with a better story for him than this but here are couple of pointers ( he works as a guide to tourists to visit night clubs which is something that the hotel staff can do since they give him whether they are probable customers but no that job is only preserved for Ali , and seriously Lana can't you just kiss him with no lights on ? Like you have your boyfriend coming to your room and you two decided to make love at night with the lights on so the blackmailer can get a good quality video .Can't you two just meet in some hotel room every now and then and have fun ? But like i was saying these characters are badly written .

2)Abbas what a wasted potential like Monzar raised the bar on another level where not only he convinced me but his body language is spot on but an actor can't simply carry the whole movie on his shoulder since he was given a terrible scenario to work with .again i am Jordanian and i think this actor is one of the best in the world because i do love watching movies .so what did the director do to his character ?

Simply , ruin his storyline after thirty minutes by turning him into a powerless character with no rage or play to further empower his position in the story. When i first saw what Ali did to him , i was thinking he will bring hell in the whole Alley to discover who did it because every inch in the Alley belongs to him according to his words and the guy who is filming everyone simply didn't have any information to gain anything .Since he is watching everyone and everybody but the director turned it to a social satire on how these hustlers lead a pathetical life with nothing but big words and intimidation which is the thing that ruins Abbas's because you are not introducing a strong villian here but rather someone who get killed easily by a side character with no intent but a speculation that he might behind something . Hanadi's character is the only good thing in this movie because she is into everyone's crap where words like i am not honored to welcome these girls in my hair salon was met by saying i don't care . She took care of business because that's what matters at the end. And she dealt with the enforcers in a very professional manner by telling them to beat it everynow and then. But she couldn't as well do the right thing by setting up an investigation to discover who did stole from Abbas since she is his right hand but that doesn't matter as well because her backstory doesn't make any sense at all lol . Like seriously , a mysterious and charismatic character like her became a bad ass because of an abusive customer not because of a parent abuse or that she means something to Abbas but she is that way because she was a night girl who got harassed like isn't that typical to her co-workers as well ?

Finally , the friend Baha' who turned into Mr. Wolfe from Pulp Fiction by fixing everything to cover for Ali and provide a good closure to his death decides to do the worst imaginable thing that any sane human being will ever do which is comitting murder by simply hiding behind the door of the building that Abbas resides in lol . Like what if Hanadi and Hanash walked in with him ? As far as i can see he has a family to feed and a shop to stay in to work for 20 years but no Mr Wolfe here decided to hide behind that door because he knew for a fact that Abbas will walk inside alone not like every time he does walk with a company of his people and he knew for a fact that stab will leave him dead which it was shot terribly but because the director doesn't really care about directing a good movie he made it that way .but to make it short i will not delve into every character in the movie because all of them are written badly and the central theme of the story is simply lost because it was about someone making a story into something great but it was quite the opposite things did happen in a chaotic manner and there was no fiction involved in it .

Enjoyed every minute of it. The characters, storyline and comedy remind me of an Arabic Pulp Fiction. It's great to see movies like this with realistic (not sugar coated) creativity coming out of the the Middle East.

It contains a bit of everything, and takes you through the streets of a country you rarely see in movies.

More power to the director on such a bold film. Looking forward to seeing more of what his creativity has to offer. It's also great to see the discussion this film has stirred up with two opposite point of views.

Definitely a must watch, great movie, love the direction and would love to see more Arabic directors take the same path.

From the opening scene, you feel that this is something different. This isn't another mindless piece of commercial television, this isn't another trend-driven cashgrab piece of entertainment, this isn't a surface-level pat-on-the-back piece of media, this is a film, one that has something to say.

Took me a while, but I finally got to see one of the most praised Jordanian films in recent years, one that deserves all its praise and some more. Bassel Ghandour writes and directs without a fear of judgement or disapproval, about characters in a city and area that are seldom rid of judgment and disapproval.

Perhaps what is most impressive here, is that Ghandour was able to say so much about the political, social, religious, and economical conditions of the country through the characters, not by lecturing the audience, but by constructing a thrilling and gripping dramatic narrative, that leaves one wondering, when will the cycle of violence and chaos ever stop? And when will honestly confront those who create such environments?

This film is a great example of the talent that yearns to reflect life in Amman and Jordan, talent that is present in every aspect here. The cinematography, lighting, set design, sound, almost every technical aspect sets a new standard for Jordanian cinema. All these aspects elevate the incredible screenplay, which is becomes even more realised with the captivating cast. There is no weak link here, everyone from the smallest roles to the leading ones were impressive, my personal favourites were Emad Azmi as Ali and Nadeem Rimawi as Tutu.

It has its faults of course, and a couple of personal gripes. Without any spoilers, there are a couple of actors that got a bit sidelined due to how the plot had to develop, their presence was missed. Also, some of the musical choices felt too detached from the overall atmosphere of certain scenes, which were supposed to be more intense.

It's undeniably dramatised, and it's how the narrative is purposefully constructed, it wishes to tell a story of a neighbourhood, and it succeeds in every way. I felt some influence from Scorsese's Mean Streets, and it also incorporates some other classic storytelling tropes such as Romeo and Juliet, but told in a local way. Whether you are with or against this film, you cannot deny its importance. Not only as a film for Jordanian cinema, but also for Arab cinema as a whole, it speaks to those who want to tell stories about their struggles and dreams, to not be silenced and conform. It provokes because it reminds them of the responsibilities that lead to such stories, stories we hear of on a daily basis.

There is a thematic antagonist that lurks in these alleys, its most disastrous perpetrator lives beyond the buildings built on buildings upon buildings, not present where the blood is shed, but where the riches are kept.

The story is so good that will keep you on your toes for the whole time!

Amazing work, very happy to see Jordanians doing such creative and entertaining movies.

Critics will always shout loud... who cares! People saying it doesn't say about Jordanian values and ethics, it's like they live in a la la land where everyone is happy, polite and sane... I find my people (Jordanians) are the most hypocrite and arrogant when it comes to Jordanian Movies.. they think the movie should only show the good side of Jordan, and ignore that the main reason of this movie is spot the light on the bad side so we are aware of it and stop denying it! Its part of our community, they tend to forget that Jordan is full of corruption, injustice court laws and very poor people.

Enjoy the movie, its such a good story!

Excellent story, keeps you interested and intrigued. Storyline is well written. Enjoyable movie with a blend of romance, crime and tragedy. Actors did a great job. Characters are all so interesting. It portrays the gangster life in underprivileged neighborhoods mixed with simple stories of people trying to live in peace. It portrays the conservative culture dominant in these alleys. It is so interesting how they show bits and pieces of the Jordanian culture yet the movie is about a couple of atypical stories that are not common in Jordan, but make a very interesting and captivating movie. A movie well done indeed!

Trash movie. The events are by far not reprentarive of the community. It is even offensive to the majority of people who live in the area used for the movie. Plot is poor as well as acting. Boring overall and not family oriented. It can easily go to the movies bin. It is interesting how they nominate movies for awards and what standards they chose are all politicly driven. Overall this is a waste of your time and not recommended. The movie isn't even worth the time I am spending to write this review. I am not sure about what alleys this movie was talking but certainly it is not eastern Amman and not Jordan.

Outstanding movie is an understatement. I recently had the pleasure of watching a movie that was set in the beautiful city of Amman, specifically in Jabal Al Natheef. As a Jordanian, I am proud to say that this movie exceeded my expectations. From the acting to the plot, everything was on point. It was great to see such talent coming out of our country. It was a refreshing change to see a movie that not only entertained but also gave a sense of pride that we have such talent. I highly recommend this movie to anyone and I am hopeful that this is just the beginning of a trend of successful movies coming out of Jordan."

In short, the concept of Jordanian art has become a lot of obscene talk,There is no story for the movie.

There is no story for the movie,It can be evaluated as a group of short videos filmed on TikTok or similar.

Novice actors who are not able to make a movie, the movie focuses on distorting the image of society to make a media sensation only.

I showed the film to my friends from many different countries and different cultures, and everyone agreed that it is a bad movie that has no story or plot.

Actors are not capable of doing a movie, they are even less than the creators of short video content.