mosheq Sand Storm may not be a masterpiece of world cinema. Perhaps more distinctive art films claim their place on that stage. This movie takes a naturalistic approach to its story, depicting development in a straightforward way without auteur splashes. It offers a big dose of realism about a tough subject and tough circumstances. Perhaps that doesn't appeal to a more casual audience.But this is absolutely a perfect movie. How is it perfect? First of all, every moment, every scene, every line of dialogue propels the story forward in a meaningful, forceful, convincing, and deeply human way. Deeply human? Yes. The characters are thoroughly human and complex, fully imagined and developed, both in the writing and the excellent performances. The story itself is constructed in a highly economical, brilliant way. For example, the reversal in dynamism between 'stern mother' and 'indulgent father' is not only interesting in terms of development; those shifts are utterly convincing as they arise organically from dynamics internal to the story and to the (highly difficult) circumstances each character finds her or himself in. It's impressive to witness the artistry of these shifts, how well though out, convincing, and how inspired it all is. The major characters are all in deep conflict with each other, and enough is given to us to understand and sympathize with each of their positions. That's uncommon in stories, in any story, whether novels or movies. This is an admirable achievement.The climactic moment, the moment of momentous decision for the daughter Layla, this is fantastic: she drives the family truck as her means of breaking away from her father's demands, but it is precisely in driving this truck where we first saw how her father fostered her independence and self-sufficiency in ways unseemly for a young woman in their village society. The 'vehicle' by which he helped give her independence of spirit is the very vehicle by which she flees his (or his society's) oppression. Wow.While it's not showy, it's a deeply inspired film, full of artistry and moving, human meaning.

beallen-49754 This movie is set in the Bedouin community, this community is off the grid and is not recognized by the Israeli government. This movie is about a girl and her marriage. The main character, Layla, loves a boy, but her father wants her to marry someone else. On top of that the father has found a second wife, who he treats better than the first wife. This adds on to the problems this family endures This creates internal conflict within the family. Layla thinks about running away, but stops because she realizes the implications in her community. In the end, she gives in and marries who her father wants. Each character has to make important decisions throughout the film that impact their lives forever. The director shows the hardships in this community and he makes you want to root for Layla. When watching, I was rooting for Lyala to just escape and run away, especially when she was so close. But, she had to worry about factors that we do not in America and marriage is more than love. Although, it is very sad she is forced to marry Munir and not who she loves, it would have been hard on her to run away like we all wanted her to do, This movie is very different compared to the traditional American film. Do not expect a fast paced film.

logatherum Overall, I give this film a rating of 2.5 stars out of 5. I did not really enjoy it, but there were parts that I did enjoy. I thought that all of the actors were very talented and good at playing their roles. I liked the story line and how the film incorporated both traditional and modern elements. For example, the fact that Layla was in an arranged marriage is very traditional. However, the charters often had iPhones throughout the film, which was interesting for someone like me to see, as someone who lives in the US where technology is extremely important and a part of everyday life, but I would never even consider an arranged marriage as a part of life- because it is not, and is so rare for me to even see. So, for this film to have BOTH of these things as an important part of life was cool and definitely a new (global) perspective. Although, I did find the story line really confusing at times and what was going on. I think that it would've helped and been less confusing if the man that Layla was in love with and wanted to marry was a more prominent character. There was a lot of talk about him (good and bad) but once he finally showed up in the film towards the middle, he only popped in for a little and left (me) with the impression that he was going to make things better for him and Layla by convincing her parents to let him marry her (which didn't happen but I wish it did!) Speaking of the ending, I did not like it! I just wish there was a LITTLE more dialogue! I wish Layla would've looked at her sister who was peeking through at them, and reassured her that everything would be okay, because the three little sisters were really the real victims in this film, as well as Layla since they were all caught in the middle.

rmanory I saw this movie after it has received the Ofir award for best movie- the Israeli Oscar, which will make it the Israeli submission for the foreign language Academy award. I think it is a good movie in its novelty. The movie depict Bedouin life in modern Israel, although there is no sign really that this is the country where this story takes place, as the language is only Arabic and only an Israeli plate on the father's car indicates that the country is Israel. Much is already known about the treatment of women in Arab society, but here the father seems to be progressive: he sends his daughter Layla to school, and even considers university...she drives and believes that her father is different than other Bedouin fathers. To her dismay she finds that he isn't. On one hand the movie deals with the issue of polygamy, but is actually deals with all the issues affecting women in Arab society: the power of a husband to ban his wife and send her to her parents, the position of the father of daughters in the Bedouin society, the "do" and "don't" when it comes to family life. The movie revolves around the "must" issues. The father feels that the society expects from him to behave in a certain way, where the women in his life expect him to be different. The father might be willing to allow his daughter to drive and to study, but this seems to be the limit of his openness to Western values, to the huge disappointment of Layla.