Mosul

It was a great look inside the lives of the people fighting to win their city back from ISIS militants. I highly recommend it!!

This is a searing portrait of some of the people behind the liberation of Mosul from the Islamic State. Particularly memorable is Um Hanadi the female leader of an all-male militia, who wishes to fight to honor her dead relatives. We see communities engulfed in thick, black smoke, and we see children who live in squalor and desperation. It isn't easy to watch, but the world needs to see it.

The stories the people tell are detailed and paint a terrible picture of the Hell they are forced to live in and the hate towards ISIS and hope they feel when the military comes through. However, Ali Maula takes an interesting angle in questioning whether or not many of the civilians re telling the truth. It is a sad thing to think but does show how much distrust and discord ISIS has sown into the country. The use of actual footage of the cruelty and violence make for a shocking and utterly disturbing watch. Gabriel doesn't pull any punches and though that does make the film hard to watch, it is not for the faint of heart, he does manage to make his point more poignant and memorable. The runtime is short clocking in well under ninety minutes - however this works in the film's favor. Not only does it still manage to perfectly fit in every story and bit of information, but the quick pace gives the film a sense of urgency and energy which makes the viewing direr and memorable.

I didn't know what to expect when I started watching this. Being a self-confessed news junkie I like to think I know what is going on in the world. The story of the rise of ISIS and their so-called 'Caliphate' was something I had followed for a couple of years and found coverage of it to be gripping. The caliphate was never going to last especially with the military might of the US-led Coalition, Russia, Turkey and Iran railed against it. The movie reflects this confusing situation where many groups and factions who would normally be enemies come together to defeat a common enemy. Where 'Mosul' succeeded was in providing me with details about who was involved in the fight to liberate Iraq's second city from ISIS. The western news media didn't really go into much detail about the various groups in the fight - but this movie showed me that Iraqis of many colors came together to liberate the city. Christian militias, Shia militias, Iranian militias, Kurds etc were all together...but knowing that Iraq is pretty much a tinder box waiting to explode, the movie reflects that this reality and while providing hope for the future unity of Iraq, it also provides a warning that things could go wrong again. The footage is amazing - as is the access the film crew had. The combat footage is gripping and is made all the more tense by the soundtrack. If you want to learn more about the fight against ISIS, this is a must-see movie. It tells the Iraqi side of the story and is an honest and emotional portrayal of the fight to rid Iraq of the horror that was ISIS.

I won't talking about the technical issues cause My problem with the contain which first of is that more than two-thirds of the film was focused on footage or operations, which is easy to call that it was acting , whether it was Hanadi or Captain Alaa, while in the real battle in the last part of the film was not taken Seriously, in addition to the lack of focus on the issue of refugees and most of the meetings were with people who did not convey the true picture of what was happening inside Mosul. Also I want to see more footage inside Mosul after liberation operation.