A compassionate tour-de-force set in post-Civil War Lebanon, Capernaum is a narrative of lost hope, poverty and sorrow. With its mostly non-professional cast, it’s a raw and emotional telling.
Twelve year-old Zain, serving five years imprisonment for attacking his brother-in-law, sues his parents for a lifetime of neglect. It’s a tragic story of a sassy, streetwise survivor and the people he meets – Ethiopian migrant worker Rahil in particular.
Zain al-Rafeea as the boy is extraordinary and his relationship with Rahil (Yordonas Shiferaw) and her baby son is both absorbing and deeply moving. It’s no wonder the film received a 15-minute standing ovation at the 2018 Cannes Film Festival (and collected the Grand Jury Prize). It also won the Audience Award at the 2018 Melbourne International Film Festival.
In only her third feature, writer/director Nadine Labaki is proving to be one of the most consistent filmmakers in the Middle East.
Nominated for the 2019 Best Foreign Language Oscar.
Rating: 88%
Director: Nadine Labaki (Caramel, Where Do We Go Now?)
Writer: Nadine Labaki (Caramel, Where Do We Go Now?), Jihad Hojeily (Caramel, Where Do We Go Now?), Michelle Keserwany
Main cast: Zain al-Rafeea, Yordanos Shiferaw, Boluwatife Treasure Bankole
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