The Culture Club (Film: Paradise Now) July 21, 2007

This is the next study evening in a series of culture studies where something from the media (e.g. a book, a film, a music album) is discussed from a Christian perspective but the evening is for people of all faiths and people of no faith at all who want to explore the message behind the media.

Attendance is restricted to those who are 15 years old and over (based on the DVD certificate).

The film is being shown on the big screen at 5:30pm followed by discussion at 7:15pm.

There is no charge for this event.

The following two sections taken from the Damaris study guide.

Summary
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"Paradise Now" explores the fraught day that Palestinian suicide bombers Said (Kais Nashef) and Khaled (Ali Suliman) spend attempting to carry out their mission. The two men are best friends and work together as mechanics in the Palestinian city of Nablus. One day, they are told that their time has come to carry out a suicide mission in neighbouring Tel Aviv in Israel. Whilst Khaled is enthusiastic about it, Said is more subdued as he has recently met the pretty and liberal Suha (Ali Suliman) who he wants to see more of. After spending a last night with their families (who have no idea what will happen the next day as Said and Khaled are not allowed to tell anyone of their plans), they are taken to record their martyr videos and receive their instructions.

But when they go, with explosives taped to their bodies, to meet their contact who will take them into Tel Aviv, something goes wrong. An army vehicle is seen nearby so the pair is forced to retreat. Whilst Khaled finds his way back to their handler Jamal (Amer Hlehel), Said runs away. Said wanders the streets of Israel trying to work out what to do and to find Khaled. Meanwhile Khaled persuades Jamal to let him try and find Said. As the day draws on, both of them are changing through their separate interactions with Suha, and it is all racing towards an inevitably tragic climax.

Background
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Paradise Now has been hugely successful critically. It won the 2006 Golden Globe for Best Foreign Language Film (the first time that a Palestinian film has ever been nominated), and was nominated for the 2006 Oscar for Best Foreign Film. It has also won many critics awards including the Independent Spirit Award for Best Foreign Film. Stephen Holden in the New York Times writes that, ‘this taut, ingeniously calculated thriller fixates on the flashpoint where psychology and politics ignite in self-destructive martyrdom.’

There has been some controversy about the film however. The relatives of people who have been killed in Israel because of suicide bombers called for the film to be pulled from Oscar nomination as they felt it encouraged such acts. Israeli officials managed to get a guarantee from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences that the film would not be presented as representing Palestine.

For more information on Paradise Now, visit the official website @ wip.warnerbros.com/paradisenow/

Previous Study Evenings
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This series continues to be popular. Previous evenings have looked at "Life on Mars" (TV series), "Collateral" (film), "Arthur and George" (book), "Moulin Rouge" (film), the Robbie Williams album "Intensive Care", "Lost in Translation" (film), "Whale Rider" (film), "The Incredibles" (film), "The Da Vinci Code" (book), the U2 album "How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb" and "Chocolat" (film).