Movies about immigrants have been increasing significantly during the last decade, with the various warzones in the Middle East unfortunately giving significant material for the filmmakers to work on. Danish-Palestinian Mahdi Fleifel comes up with a version revolving around two Palestinian immigrants stranded in Athens.
To A Land Unknown is screening at Thessaloniki International Film Festival
Chatila and Reda are cousins, who are desperately trying to move from Greece, where they were brought by a smuggler, and find passage towards Germany, where the former dreams of opening a cafe, employing Reda and also bringing his family in. Reda, on the other hand, and his drug addiction constantly causes problems for the two, with the latest one essentially ruining them financially. The two of them also feel the need to take care of a kid that has been stranded in Greece on his way to Italy, Malik, with Chatila eventually coming up with a plan that will allow them to get money for the fake IDs they need in order to move from Greece. Expectedly, though, things do not go as planned.
Mahdi Fleifel essentially comes up with a character drama, with the relationships between the three protagonists and eventually Tatiana, a woman Chatila meets by chance, being from and center. In that regard, Chatila (whose name sounds much like the slang for being angry in Greek) is always on the move, smart and dependable, but also the one who eventually truly moves beyond. Reda on the other hand is weak, deeply problematic and completely dependable on his cousin, in an aspect that puts even more pressure on Chatila. Malik’s presence also moves into the same direction, although in his case, it is justified due to his age, not to mention that, after a point, his role changes completely. Lastly, Tatiana has a mysteriously ambiguous role, essentially functioning as a catalyst for the story through her relationship with the former.
Expectedly, the acting plays a rather significant role in the movie, and it is easy to say that in the case of “To A Land Unknown” is on a quite high level. Mahmood Bakri as Chatila is a tour de force, with the way his attitude essentially dictates the tension of the movie being the biggest trait of his performance. Aram Sabbah as Reda is also good in a character that is the opposite of Chatila in many ways, with the way he portrays his vulnerability being his apogee. The chemistry between the two is excellent, with the antithesis of their personas working quite well here. Mohammad Alsurafa as Malik gives a rather realistic performance, stealing the show on a number of occasions, while Aggeliki Papoulia as Tatiana portrays an aloofness that eventually becomes something completely different quite convincingly.
Also quite interesting is the way Fleifel chooses to portray his protagonists. Although the build up in the beginning essentially forces to viewer to like the main duo, their actions as time passes seem like a challenge for the audience to continue to do so. This ambiguity works quite well here, particularly because it allows the director to present a number of rather realistic comments about human psyche, but also because it changes to the movie to a thriller practically, in an approach that definitely adds to the entertainment it offers
Thodoris Mihopoulos’s cinematography captures Athens with realism, but also in a way that highlights the claustrophobic setting the protagonists inhabit. Halim Sabbagh’s editing results in a fast pace that becomes even faster as time passes, in another element that dictates the tension that permeates the narrative after a point.
“To A Land Unknown” is an excellent film that manages to present the lives of immigrants with realism while remaining entertaining from beginning to end, headed by an impressive effort from Bakri.
