”
Divine Intervention
”
is an amazing, thought-provoking dark comedy that pokes fun at
the absurdity of the Palestinian-Israeli border conflict and
condemning the policies of war and world governments in
general.
“Divine Intervention” is an amazing, thought-provoking dark comedy that pokes fun at the absurdity of the Palestinian-Israeli border conflict and condemning the policies of war and world governments in general.
The film follows the funny exploits of E.S. (Elia Suleiman) as he mourns his father’s death in Nazareth, where the film takes place. Frustrated and upset, E.S. wishes to head over to the local checkpoint that goes from Israel to the West Bank at Ramallah with his gorgeous Palestinian girlfiend, who, it should be said, is not wearing a veil and is depicted sexily, a plea for more open attitudes concerning women in the region.
The humor rises from the absurdity of each situation in the film, with each scene existing almost on its own with a fade-to-black to signify its end. In the scene with E.S.’s sexy girlfriend, the humor comes out of the Israeli guards, who are so overwhelmed by her appearance that they allow her to walk through the checkpoint unabated. They can’t let go of their carnal desires long enough to do their jobs. The scene’s comedy works both as commentary on Palestinian feminine aesthetics as well as the superficiality of the Israeli guards.
But the film doesn’t just poke fun at the Israeli occupiers, it also spends considerable time jabbing the Palestinian government and culture as well. One of the funniest, yet most disturbing scenes in “Divine Intervention” is when a white man, dressed in a Santa Claus suit is trying to spread some Western Christmas cheer throughout the region. Surrounded by a group of Palestinian boys who chase him up a hill, we are treated to a hilarious slapstick scene of presents and packages falling all over the place.
As the scene ends without resolution, we are scared for the man in the Santa suit, not knowing if his destiny is safe or not. Perhaps he will talk his way out of the situation, maybe not. What if the youths don’t have hostile intentions? What are their intentions? By intentionally not showing the end of most situations, we have real concerns for the characters’ lives and frustrations. By refusing to tie up each situation neatly, the filmmakers go even further in illustrating the deep seeds of resentment that exist between the Palestinians and Israelis and make no judgements about the future of a Palestinian State.
“Divine Intervention” is a plea for sanity in the region and contemplates the nature of humor in these increasingly difficult times. The characters who inhabit the small two- and three-minute sketches that make up the bulk of the film laugh and smile and use humor to help them through their pain while they ridicule the leaders on all sides.
To think that a film like “Divine Intervention” could come at this moment in history is very surprising. In fact, Sulieman needed to get independent financing from the French film industry to get his film made. It’s a great political statement as well as a well-rounded contemporary comedy.
DIVINE INTERVENTION (YADON ILAHAYYA). Written, directed and produced by Elia Suleiman. With Elia Suleiman, Amer Daher, Manal Khader, Nayeffahoum Daher, Jamel Daher and George Khleifi. No Rating (mature themes would probably be PG-13), 90 minutes. In Arabic and Hebrew with English subtitles. Now playing at art house theaters throughout the Bay Area.
