Emmett Jordan Reviews 'Incendies'

I was deeply moved by this powerful film, “Incendies.” An adaptation of a play by a Lebanon-born Canadian playright, it was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film last year. It also inspired me to do a bit of reading about the civil war in southern Lebanon during the early 1970s.

The story revolves around a set of twins and their mother, Nawal, a Middle Eastern immigrant living in Canada. Nawal seems to suffer a
stroke. When she dies, her lawyer carries out her unusual will,
revealing to the two young adults that they have a brother and father
whom they must locate before they can give their mother an honorable burial.

The film is organized by the acts of the original play, juxtaposing the present journey of the twins as they carry out their mother's wishes with the past events that brought their mother to Canada. It’s difficult to say much more than that without giving away too much of the plot.

One of the fundamental questions posed by this film is: How can
profoundly “deep chains of hatred” be broken or reconciled? The film
depicts the intense hatred between the Christian nationals and Muslims in southern Lebanon during their Civil War. (While no country is named, it is clear that they are referencing Lebanon.)

The conflict seems to be rooted in complicated family and village relationships as much as in religious dogma. The atrocities of the war define these relationships.

The story is told mostly from the perspective of the daughter and the
mother. Because both actors bear a strong physical resemblance, the
generational aspect of the conflict is visually reinforced. What's more, the characters are well developed and the actions they take make sense within the context of what happens to them over the course of the film.

There is some extremely graphic violence, so be forewarned.

I would strongly recommend this film with an unqualified “four pops.”

Related Topics: Movie review, incendies, and old greenbelt theatre