A Bahraini Tale

Synopsis

Set during the Arab-Israeli war of 1967, this epic drama is both the personal story of a middle-class Bahraini family and an account of the hopes and faith the Arab world had in Gamal Abdel Nasser as its leader. Intimately told, it skillfully interweaves the personal and the general to reveal a society struggling against gender inequality and female sacrifice, as women attempt to enjoy freedom of choice. This is the third feature film from Bahrain, and all have been directed by Bassam Al-Thawadi, who shows flexibility in both style and subject, always demonstrating a deep sense of reality and romanticism. The social concerns here are clear and the storytelling simple, yet both are challenging and help the film explore areas of Arab collective memory more powerfully than any other film has done in a long time.