larma7 These days, as opposed to a few years back when I was far more invested in political discussion, I now am fairly apathetic in political discourse, which is ironic since now I can actually vote. But if there are two issues which I really try not to talk about it is 1) abortion, which is the same old round-about "conversation" which never, ever goes anywhere, and 2) the Israeli/Palestinian conflict in the Middle East. I try to avoid talking about the latter because, seemingly more than any other issue, it feels almost impossible for me to find any kind of coherent truth about this bleak and terrible conflict. My heart lies with the Palestinians, but it seems depending on who I talk to on a certain day, my position could change instantaneously. Obviously, it would help if I actually properly researched the situation, but admittedly it's much easier to just say, screw it, let them kill each other! Anyway, I had previously watched James Longley's "Iraq in Fragments", his Malick-esque, slice of life look at the Sunni, Shia, and Kurd civil war in the after-math of the US invasion, a beautifully stunning documentary, which merely allows the every-day people of the country to speak, and it helps paint a picture of the true heart of the conflict. I don't look at his previous film, "Gaza Strip", as some kind of educational tool to teach me the "truth" of the nasty, bitter conflict in Israel, and I think the mistake by many is viewing the film in such a context because I don't think that's the goal of the film. What you get here is an arresting account of the conflict in the streets of Gaza with the Palestinian people, following the children as they get shot at by Israeli soldiers, and listening them speak their minds about their life and dreams in a hopeless situation seemingly only filled with horror stories. Like "Iraq in Fragments", Longley is wise to keep his presence at a distance, with no narration or studio interviews. All the action is told in the heat of the moment, the camera rushes into danger and stays close for the intimate moments. I would probably call this a more urgent film than "Iraq in Fragments", as it doesn't carry with it the same slow, tranquil rhythm, but it still has its moments of being rather hypnotic, and it is overall a well-made film. It's a bit one-note and if you come to this film wanting to see a picture of both-sides, something which I perhaps would have liked, then you will be disappointed. "Gaza Strip" simply offers a unique, up close and personal account of the conflict from the Palestinian side. It's a good film, but a more full picture of the conflict could have made it a great one

thestudiollc Is an Arabic documentary about a 4-mile wide beach strip that Arabian people have refuge to from the Jews in Iseral. It is a ghetto of Isearal. The population is around 1.5 million people jammed together. The main character is a child in the film was 13 years old he is uneducated and almost homeless. He lives with his father who is never seen, mother, who is worn with age. The whole lot of people in the film in one word or another said they live in hell wanting peace but they fight for peace like throwing stone and rock and the Jews with gun. And then wander why they shot at them. I agree that it is hell on earth but the film had no continues point to the film just filming what the director could film there. Unfortunately, the story had no scripting narration to give the viewer sympathetic feeling to the people in the situation. The people are full of hate stating they' hate American for not helping' or aggravating people with guns. Luckily, from a director's standpoint, I looked at this film as what not to do. The reason why is the idea of the film was lost in just showing the audience the 'wow effect' of dead and destruction in Gaza. The technical aspect of this documentary is limited but considering bullets were flying nearby made the creative juices not to flow. First, the camera footage is shot like actualities. Most are hand-held standing or walking shots. There were very few shot giving the screen depth. Like using foreground and background. I thought it looks like unused news footage but that's my opinion.

tommy_river2 This is the best documentary out there about the Palestinians and their struggle. No doubt about it. This movie racked up tons of great reviews, which you can read on the official website, including in the NY Times, Variety, etc. There is a huge attempt to smash this film's reputation by writing bad user comments about it -- but check it out: The only kind of reviews "Gaza Strip" gets are either GREAT or "Don't see this film -- it's just lies". Let's see if you can guess who's writing those critical reviews ... could it be ... Zionist supporters of Israeli occupation policy? Hmmm...Anyway -- if you get a chance, check out this documentary -- it might open you eyes!

haganahrules Mr. Longley should do his next documentary on the terrorist training camps currently being held in Gaza for 7-15 year old children. If the world knew more about this they would not be surprised by the high number of Palestinians killing themselves in the process of murdering Israeli civilians.Other reviewers were right to say that the film is a low-quality cut and paste amateur video. The director is obviously biased because we don't see what really is happening in Gaza, a land that is fenced off from Israel to prevent suicide bombers. As a supporter of human rights across the globe, I can only recommend this film for people wanting to learn how NOT to make a documentary