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Rana's Wedding

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I would like to respond to Brian Grossman's analysis of _Rana's Wedding_. But before doing so, I would like to say that the film in question is, as Phil Hall suggests, a "subtle gem."

It is a gem, I agree. At the same time, however, I would suggest the reader to view _Ford Transit_ by Abu-Assad as well to get a deeper understanding of his filmmaking, if not the Palestinian situation.

Grossman, in his "review," has cut to the heart of Abu-Assad's position as a Palestinian filmmaker. Abu-Assad was born in Nazareth and moved to Amsterdam in the early 1980's. Being as such, his aesthetic, and what we may safely say as outlook in terms of use of visual representation, is European. In _Rana's Wedding_, Abu-Assad did chose to portray an upper to middle-class Palestinian family living outside of the city walls of Jerusalem. In doing so, the film does indeed represent a certain strata of the Palestinian community.

But let this not deter the reader from thinking every Palestinian is either upper-class or a "starving refugee," as Grossman says in his review. Rather, the film, as an aesthetic document of Palestinian culture and society, cuts at the heart of conflicts within the Palestinian community itself-a community that is by no means unified.
Whether it being religion, politics, or class, Palestinian society is fragmented. The media likes to pigeon-hole identity, and in the case of the Palestinian identity it is either as terrorist or refugee. The "subtle gem" that is _Rana's Wedding_ lies in the fact that it does not cater to norms predicated by the media. Rather, it films a section of Palestinian society that is not readily available for public viewing.
Be that as it may, it does have its problems as well. Problems inherent to Palestinian society which are too extensive and complex to get into on an Amazon.com review of the film.

At this point I'll stop, in hopes that the reader will be anxious, after reading this litany of words, to view the film.

PREPARING FOR A wedding is a hectic ordeal anywhere in the world. In the film "Rana's Wedding," however, the bride's situation is even more complicated than most. She awakes from her bed in East Jerusalem with an ultimatum from her father to either marry one of the up-and-coming eligible bachelors who have asked for her hand from a list he has given her, or accompanying him to Egypt--and he wants her decision by four that afternoon. But Rana has other ideas. She sets out to find her true love, Khalil, a struggling theater company director in near-by Ramallah, persuade him to propose, find the registrar, have her father accept her beloved and then marry--all by the 4 p.m. deadline. Because her life is constrained at every turn by the Israeli military occupation, Rana's task is a journey of epic proportion.
Palestinian novelist Liana Badr wrote the screenplay, along with Ihab Lamey, based on her own trials and tribulations in order to marry the Palestinian politician Yasser Abd Rabbih. The film's Palestinian director, Hany Abu-Assad, whose later "Paradise Now" was nominated for an Academy Award for best foreign film, carefully shows us the daily life of those living under occupation. As they watch a Palestinian home being demolished by an Israeli bulldozer, Rana tells a friend, "They are destroying homes as I am trying to build one."
Through it all Rana (played with quiet resolve by Palestinian Clara Khoury) is determined to succeed. Even though at times she is disappointed and despairing, Rana presses on--not unlike the people of Palestine.

For a young Palestinian woman in Jerusalem, getting married requires taking some back roads and back streets, given the checkpoints that block passage of traffic almost everywhere. Viewers of this film get the experience of life lived under a state of occupation and political tensions. Adding to the drama is the deadline imposed by the young woman's father, who is leaving for Egypt at 4pm and has given her the choice of going with him or marrying a man of his choosing. The third option - her own - is marriage to a man she really loves, and she has 12 hours to find him and get the agreement of her reluctant father.

As we follow her, we see Jerusalem as it is for those who live there, trying to just get done the things that daily life requires. The film's attitude toward the government and the military who prevent that from happening easily is evident at almost every turn, ranging from the bride-to-be's annoyance to pangs of fear as she watches a house being destroyed and a family displaced by security forces. At another time, she comes upon a funeral cortege. But the film is determined to end happily, no matter what, and viewers are left with a picture of a world that is often missed by the cameras of the news networks.

Without taking a political stand for either the Israeli or Palestinian side, the Director shows how one very determined young lady named Rana overcame enormous obstacles in order to be married to the young man *she* chose and loved rather than one her father selected and would have preferred for her. The reality of living under "occupation" becomes very clear from the beginning of the film. There are cameras located throughout Western Jerusalem and the Palestinian town of Ramallah to catch insurgency on film and ensure a quick response. Israeli soldiers are shown at checkpoints which often create traffic jams, making it difficult for residents to conduct their lives in a normal manner. Soldiers with weapons walk in groups within the city ... on guard ready for any eventuality.

Rana is a Palestinian young lady of the Islamic faith who has fallen in love with Khalil a theater director. Her father recognizes she desires to marry and provided her a list of eligible bachelors from good families who made inquiries about her marriage prospects ... Her father decided to take her to Egypt on a business trip by 4:00PM that day if she does not select one of the eligible bachelors from the list. Rana is determined to meet with Khalil and be married before 4PM so she does not have to travel to Egypt under her watchful father's eye ... The only problem is ... she is having difficulty locating him. She learns he was going to visit Western Jerusalem but due to Israeli road blocks he did could not make it to the city. The clock is ticking away fast and she must locate him. A female cousin, aware of her marriage plans, had found her a wedding dress and matching shoes. Rana goes against all odds to find Khalil to expedite her marriage plans (of which he is blissfully unaware). She travels via local bus transportation to get to Ramallah to seek him out. She dodges a fight between Palestinian children and Israeli soldiers. The childen are throwing rocks and manage to ignite a fire near the soldiers who shoot live bullets at the rock throwers. She made it to the theater in Ramallah where Khalil had slept overnight due to the political frays happening nearby. Rana explains her plight, the need to marry or she will be taken to Egypt by her father. Khalil agrees to the marriage but prefers they marry with her father's blessing. They can marry without but in either case, they must have the official paperwork from the local magistrate. To obtain the papers, they travel over meandering dirt roads to avoid fighting which had escalated. They reach the magistrate's office only to discover a long line of people - all of whom need offial approval for important matters, one young man seeks a permit to bury his brother before sundown on that day.

The conclusion of the film is highly climactic, after Rana gets her hair done and is dressed in her wedding attire while her relatives await celebration, the magistrate has still not yet arrived. Her father is anxious and wants to drive to the airport but the couple persuade him instead to go to the magistrate's office where the marriage ceremony can be performed. While they do not make it to the office, amazingly they do meet up with the magistrate, at an Israeli checkpoint. The viewer will be satisified to learn, this couple manages to get married. It will be a surprise ending to discover where the marriage ceremony occurs and where the marriage celebration and dance takes place. Overall, this is a very unique film which provides great insights into the many obstacles people must overcome to live their daily lives in this part of the world. Erika Borsos [pepper flower]

This is a fairly typical Palestinian movie that explores the issues of barriers that keep people apart and that keep people from living a "normal" life. In this case, Rana, young Palestinian woman finds herself facing an arranged marriage in Egypt because she has not chosen an acceptable man from a list her father has given her. Her father has told her that if she isn't married by 4:00 he will take her to Egypt. The movie covers her day as she tries to avoid this situation. Her strategy is to find her boyfriend and convince him to get married. At first she cannot find him and then there are a number of obstacles to overcome and swings in emotion. Most people will probably enjoy this movie because it shows the main characters moving around the streets of Jerusalem so you get to see a number of scenes you might not normally see in the news. It also shows some of the little struggles Palestinians go through. When all is said and done the ending is fairly happy but the message is sort of political, even though part of the conflict comes from social expectations.

The movie has sort of a sad and depressed tone most of the time and kind of an odd brown-yellowish tint which sort of adds to the feeling of exasperation. This is an interesting film, if not an uplifting one. The main character has appeared in another well-known film as a bride (The Syrian Bride) so it seems a little odd to see her in somewhat of a similar role here, but the movie is worth checking out.

When the movie first started I thought it would be another young lady trying to run away from home to marry her no good lover. However, the plot was slightly different and very touching. I won't say too much about it but it feels like you're going through the same emotions as Rana* (Clara Khoury). Really great film, it capture todays events but doesn't lose sight of what the film is REALLY about.

This jewel of film is about planning a whirlwind wedding amid the realities of the life for Palestinians under Israeli occupation. Though the political issues are ever present, it does an excellent job of keeping focused on the story. I felt as if I were seeing Rana's experiences on her wedding day, through her eyes.

This film explores the complexities of Palestinian life under the Israeli occupation. We follow the perambulations of Rana, a young Palestinian woman, through Jerusalem and the West Bank as she tries to make all the necessary administrative, legal, and familial arrangements required to get married by the end of the day. This film really represents a slice of daily Palestinian life. I believe that the primary goal of Hany Abu-Assad was to make a film to present the thousands of annoyances, restrictions, and invasions that the Israeli occupation makes on Palestinian life. If this was the case, he has succeeded marvelously. The presence of the Israeli soldiers and army of occupation is offensive. He has also captured an image of Palestinian society in transition that is somewhere between Islamic traditions and Western liberalism. For example, Rana is given a list of potential grooms by her father, an older tradition of arranged marriage. At the same time, Rana does not wear a headscarfe, and her and her boyfriend/husband drive around in a VW bug listening to pop music, just like their contemporaries throughout the Western world. I think a secondary goal of Hany Abu-Assad was to portray the Palestinians as not too different than their Western counterparts (i.e. not all Palestinians are fanatic Islamacists). There is also some marvelous cinematography in this film, with some great shots of some of the holiest places in Jerusalem. The contentious issue of how the Palestinians should respond to the Israeli occupation (and more particularly the issue of suicide bombers) is avoided in this film. The theme/tone is more along the lines of 'life goes on' rather than 'we must fight'. This story itself is charming, a woman gets the man tale, but not particularly outstanding. This film provides a balancing view of what the Israeli occupation, and US support of the Israeli occupation, is doing to the indigenous peoples of Palestine. Highly recommended.

'Rana's Wedding' is a wonderful film. It not only tells the story of a young Palestinian girl who is determined to be united with her beloved but gives a compelling and realistic view of the Zionist Occupation. The wedding occurs finally at a Chequepoint, and a powerful poem by Mahmoud Darwish concludes the film. 'Rana's Wedding' actually does not preach politics at all. It simply shows the reality of Palestine under Occupation. Apart from that, however, the manner in which the eternal beauty of Jerusalem is captured in this film is an extraordinary achievement, and rivals any photograph or film I ever saw about Al Quds.

Hany Abu-Assad has proven himself with this film, 'Ford Transit', and 'Paradise Now', to be one
of the most interesting and astute chroniclers of the Palestinian experience in Jerusalem.
The plot is simple: A young Palestinian woman must decide whether to defy tradition and
marry her boyfriend that day, or leave forever with her father, and enter an arranged marriage
in another land.

The film sometimes meanders, but has some very powerful sequences, giving a strong sense of
the realities of life under occupation, and some sweetly human comic moments showing the
universality of humanity in all cultures. Very good lead performances all around.