A Syrian Love Story, film review: Tender, tragic and inspirational

Sean McAllister’s documentary is topical and raw
Touching: Ragdha Hassan in A Syrian Love Story
Charlotte O'Sullivan18 September 2015

Sean McAllister’s documentary about a Syrian family in crisis couldn’t be more topical. Yet (shot over four years) it also works as a raw portrait of a marriage, creating an atmosphere so terrifyingly claustrophobic and bitter it makes your heart pound. As in all the best movies, you can’t see the twists coming. And there are an awful lots of twists.

When we first meet the film’s subjects — Left-wing activist Raghda and former Palestinian freedom fighter Amer — they’re living apart. This is thanks to Assad (Raghda’s in jail). Then Raghda’s freed and she, Amer and their three sons seek exile in Paris. The kids — especially adorable, eccentric young Bob — are delighted. But not for long.

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McAllister’s camera could be viewed as intrusive. But Raghda and Amer are so articulate, as well as honest, that you never feel the couple have ceded control. The film, if you like, is a canvas and everyone gets to smear the paint into interesting shapes. The themes being explored are love and home. The melancholy lesson is that the two don’t always collide, but remain worth pursuing.

Tender, tragic and inspirational, A Syrian Love Story snagged the Grand Jury Prize at the Sheffield Film Festival this year. No wonder — it’s a winner.

Cert 12A, 76 mins

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