namashi_1 One of this year's Foreign Language Nominees at the Academy Awards, 'The Insult' is a heartbreaking story about divide, hate & circumstances. Made with the sharp vision of Writer-Director Ziad Doueiri, this is a film made with a beating heart & a sensitive mind. 'The Insult' Synopsis: After an emotional exchange between a Lebanese Christian and a Palestinian refugee escalates, the men end up in a court case that gets national attention.'The Insult' is a deep insight into a common insult between two men. One is a Lebanese Christian & the other a Palestinian Refugee, both complexed & equally haunted souls, who stumble upon each other on a regular day & end up offending each other. What follows is a messy court case & the circus around it, which in turn, is a strong portrayal of the cultural differences, the hate that has followed on for legacies & the circumstances caused by people itself, who for the worse, have given in to their emotion of hate.Ziad Doueiri, along-with co-writer Joelle Touma, Writes a Screenplay that captivates & disturbs to equal effect. The motive of its strong Writing is clear: This story is important & it needs to told. The Screenplay is a protest towards hate & the people who are spreading hate now as we speak. Ziad Doueiri's Direction is subtle, but highly commendable. Cinematography & Editing are perfect. Art & Costume Design are decent.Performance-Wise: Kamel El Basha & Adel Karam, both, are excellent. Both the actors portray intensity & genuine emotion, without ever missing a single beat. Rita Hayek does a wonderful as Karam's wife. Others lend remarkable support.On the whole, 'The Insult' is an important story told with sensitivity & command. Don't Miss It.

gizmomogwai The poster for The Insult, nominated for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Film, doesn't quite do the product justice. It makes the film look like a simple tragic drama; in fact The Insult builds on its intriguing premise of a simple insult escalating, and balances feelings of remorse, tensions and even comedy and absurdity in a brisk tone and style. A film where the prosecutor and defense are father and daughter, and the shock reveal, is a film that isn't totally taking itself seriously. But it reflects on very serious wounds in the past and the lack of reconciliation after, a followup to a tragic story previously depicted in an earlier Oscar nominee Incendies. But Incendies was Canadian and The Insult is actually Lebanese, the first Lebanese film to be nominated, and it speaks in a national voice.With only some minor violence, The Insult's story largely escalates in the courtroom, and anyone interested in courtroom films will find this great material. I had to stop myself from saying "courtroom drama," because again, it's not only that. The absurdities provoke laughs, the drama provokes thought, and The Insult has something for everybody, even people who know little about Lebanon (The film itself explains much of the gaps in knowledge for the viewer).

Paul Allaer "The Insult" (2017 release from Lebanon; 112 min.) brings the story of Tony, a Christian Lebanese, and Yasser, a Palestine refugee and long-time resident of Lebanon. As the movie opens, we see Tony at a rally of the Christian party in Beirut. When Tony gets back home, he spends time with his highly pregnant wife Shirine. Them by accident, and resulting from a faulty drainpipe on his balcony, he wets Yasser, a foreman in a construction crew that is repairing buildings in the neighborhood. One thing leads to another, and Yasser calls Tony a "f---ing prick". Tony is outraged, and decides to pursue the matter. At this point we are 10 min. into the movie, but to tell you more of the plot would spoil your viewing experience, you'll just have to see for yourself how it all plays out.Couple of comments: this is the latest movie from accomplished Lebanese writer-director Zid Doueiri, who previously has brought us excellent films like 2012's "The Attack". Here Doueiri brings another heavily politicized tale that pushes all the right buttons, this time pitting Arabs against Arabs. I must admit that I wasn't really aware of this, but if we believe what Doueiri portrays in this film, there is a deeply-seeded resentment within the Lebanese Christian community against the many Palestinians what have over the years crossed into Lebanon and settled there. Central to the film are the long court proceedings that eventually take place between the two protagonists. I shan't say much more (biting my lip)! But I will say this: the movie flies by in no time. When the Best Foreign language Oscar nominations were recently accounted, I was a bit surprised to see that this was nominated. Now that I have seen the film, I can't help but feel whether this was nominated more for political reasons that for pure artistic reasons. Not to imply that "The Insult" is not a good movie, but in my humble opinion there are other foreign language movies from last year that seem to be more deserving, such as "Thelma" (from Norway). "B.P.M." (from France), or "The Commune" (from Denmark), just to name those."The Insult" opened in early February at my local art-house theater here in Cincinnati, and I couldn't wait to see it. The Super Bowl Sunday matinee screening where I saw this at was attended very nicely, somewhat to my surprise. Glad to see there seems to be a strong interest for this! If you are in the mood for a highly charged and political drama that pits Christian Arabs against Palestine Arabs, you cannot go wrong with this, so I encourage you to check out "The Insult", be it in the theatre, on VOD, or eventually on DVD/Blu-ray, and draw your own conclusion...

leaakkary A Lebanese movie perfectly describing the situation in Lebanon after the war...