Divine Intervention (film)

2022-05-11T00:29:47Z

108.49.70.67: robot: Update article (please report if you notice any mistake or error in this edit)

{{Short description|2002 film}}
{{Infobox film
| name = Divine Intervention
| image = Divine Intervention film.jpg
| director = [[Elia Suleiman]]
| writer = Elia Suleiman
| producer = [[Humbert Balsan]] Elia Suleiman
| starring = Elia Suleiman Manal Khader
| distributor = Avatar Films (USA)
| released = May 19, 2002
| runtime = 92 minutes
| country = [[France]] [[Morocco]] [[Germany]] [[Palestinian territories]]
| language = Arabic Hebrew English
| budget =
}}
'''''Divine Intervention''''' ({{lang-ar|يد إلهية}}) is a 2002 film by [[Palestinian people|Palestinian]] director [[Elia Suleiman]], which may be described as a surreal [[black comedy]]. The film consists largely of a series of brief interconnected sketches, but for the most part records a day in the life of a Palestinian living in [[Nazareth]], whose girlfriend lives several checkpoints away in the [[West Bank]] city of [[Ramallah]].

One lyrical section features a sunglasses-clad Palestinian woman (played by Manal Khader) whose passing by not only distracts all eyes, but whose gaze causes Israeli military checkpoint towers to crumble. The director features prominently as the film's silent, expressionless protagonist in a performance that has been compared to the work of [[Buster Keaton]], [[Jim Jarmusch]] and [[Jacques Tati]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.miftah.org/Display.cfm?DocId=2295&CategoryId=24|title=A Little Something Divine|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050226024700/http://www.miftah.org/Display.cfm?DocId=2295&CategoryId=24|archive-date=2005-02-26}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.indiewire.com/people/people_030115elia.html |title=A Breakdown of Communication: Elia Suleiman Talks About "Divine Intervention" |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20051030011018/http://www.indiewire.com/people/people_030115elia.html |archive-date=2005-10-30 }}</ref>

The film is noted for its minimal use of dialogue, its slow pace and repetition in behavior by its characters.

==Cast==
* [[Elia Suleiman]] as E.S.
* Manal Khader as The Woman
* Denis Sandler Sapoznikov as Israeli soldier on Palestinian-Israeli border
* [[Menashe Noy]] as Soldier at Checkpoint.

==Plot==
{{confusing section|date=November 2019}}
In Nazareth, [[Santa Claus]] runs away from children as gifts fall from his basket. He's been stabbed and leans against the ruin of a Franciscan chapel atop Mount Fear.

A taxi driver curses familiar faces as he drives through the streets.

Neighbors bicker over small stuff.

A Palestinian couple meets in a car.

More bickering neighbors.

A tourist asks an Israeli policeman for directions. Unable to help her himself, the policeman brings out a blindfolded Palestinian prisoner from the back of his van. The Palestinian tells her three different possible routes.

The couple is in the car again. The man (E.S.) blows up a red balloon with the face of [[Yasser Arafat]] drawn on it. He releases it near an Israeli checkpoint. An Israeli soldier is about to shoot it down but his comrade stops him. In the confusion, the couple are able to drive through the checkpoint together. The balloon floats across Jerusalem, eventually settling against the [[Dome of the Rock]].

At night, the couple again in a car.

The next morning, five Israeli men practice an elaborate sequence of dance-like moves. Armed with guns, they repeatedly fire at targets painted like a Palestinian woman under the direction of a choreographer-officer. When one of the targets fails to fall to the ground, a real Palestinian woman (dressed like the targets) appears. The officer instructs his men to fire at her. In a supernatural feat, she gathers their bullets in the air around her and rises from the ground. The bullets form a crown of thorns around her head until she lets them fall to the ground. She then uses crescent-adorned stars and rocks to kill all but the officer. A helicopter appears to reinforce the Israelis, which the woman also easily destroys. The dance choreographer watches helplessly and the woman disappears.

The film ends with a man and his mother watching their dinner cook in a pressure cooker.

==Oscar controversy==
Despite being nominated for the "[[Palme d'Or]]" award at the [[2002 Cannes Film Festival]], the film's consideration as candidate for Best Foreign Film at the Academy Awards was an occasion for considerable controversy. In late 2002, producer [[Humbert Balsan]] authorized the US distributor of the film to release a statement which stated that Balsan had asked the [[Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences]] if the film could run for best foreign language picture. According to Balsan, the answer was no, because "Palestine is not a state we recognize in our rules." However, spokesperson John Pavlik states that the Academy had never made a decision on that issue because Suleiman had never submitted his film. Critics like ''The Electronic Intifada'' and others, claim that the Academy did make a decision, and that it was based on political considerations.<ref>Doherty, Benjamin J. Abunimah, Ali. (2002). "[http://electronicintifada.net/v2/article962.shtml Oscars' double standard turns Palestinian film into refugee]". ''The Electronic Intifada''. December 10. Last accessed: December 19, 2005.</ref>

The film was considered for an Oscar the following year; Pavlik told ''[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]]'' "The committee decided to treat Palestine as an exception in the same way we treat Hong Kong as an exception. It's always the goal of the foreign-language film award executive committee to be as inclusive as possible."<ref>{{cite web|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/3209974.stm|title=Palestinian film joins Oscar race | work=BBC News | date=October 21, 2003 | access-date=January 2, 2010}}</ref>

==Music==
{{Infobox album
| name = Divine intervention
| type = soundtrack
| artist = Various Artists
| cover =
| released = September 30, 2002
| recorded =
| venue =
| studio =
| genre = [[Soundtrack]]
| length = 52:27
| label = [[Milan Music]]
| producer =
| prev_title =
| next_title =
}}

Elia Suleiman has used entirely non-original music of various genres and artists in the film. These include artists such as the Belgian singer [[Natacha Atlas]], Indian composer [[A.R. Rahman]], Lebanese electro-pop band [[Soapkills]] and Paris-based record producer [[Mirwais Ahmadzaï]].

'''Track listing''':
#"[[I Put a Spell on You]]" by [[Natacha Atlas]] — 3:44
#"Ana Oual Azab" by [[Mohammed Abdel Wahab]] — 9:01
#"Fingers" by [[Joi (band)|Joi]] — 6:34
#"Easy Muffin" by [[Amon Tobin]] — 5:03
#"Wala Ala Baloh" by [[Amr Diab]] — 5:08
#"Les Kid Nappeurs Main Theme" by [[Marc Collin]] — 4:13
#"Tango El Amal" by [[Nour el Houda]] — 3:10
#"[[Bombay Theme|Mumbai Theme Tune]]" by [[A.R. Rahman]] — 5:14
#"Definitive beat" by Mirwais — 3:58
#"Tango" by [[Soapkills]] — 3:19
#"Dub4me" by [[Soapkills]] — 3:03

==Awards==
The film screened at the [[2002 Cannes Film Festival]] on May 12,<ref>{{cite web | title= Release dates for Yadon ilaheyya | url=https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0274428/releaseinfo | access-date=2009-08-10 | publisher=IMDb.com }}</ref> was awarded the [[Jury Prize (Cannes Film Festival)|Jury Prize]]<ref name="festival-cannes.com">{{cite web|url=http://www.festival-cannes.com/en/archives/ficheFilm/id/3107802/year/2002.html |title=Festival de Cannes: Divine Intervention |access-date=2009-10-25 |work=festival-cannes.com |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110822140128/http://www.festival-cannes.com/en/archives/ficheFilm/id/3107802/year/2002.html |archive-date=2011-08-22 }}</ref> and the [[FIPRESCI Prize]] for "its sensitive, amusing and innovative vision of a complex and topical situation and the tragic consequences that result from it".<ref>{{cite web|title=Cannes Film Festival 2002 |url=https://www.imdb.com/Sections/Awards/Cannes_Film_Festival/2002#FIPRESCI_Prize |access-date=2009-08-10 |publisher=IMDb.com |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090209093140/http://www.imdb.com/Sections/Awards/Cannes_Film_Festival/2002 |archive-date=2009-02-09 }}</ref>

;Won
* Jury Prize at the Cannes Film Festival<ref name="festival-cannes.com" />
* FIPRESCI Prize (competition) at the Cannes Film Festival<ref name="festival-cannes.com" />
* Special Jury Prize at the [[Chicago International Film Festival]]
* Screen International Award at the [[European Film Awards]]

;Nominated
* Palme d'Or at the Cannes Film Festival<ref name="festival-cannes.com" />
* Best Non-American Film at the [[Bodil Awards]]

==See also==
*[[List of Palestinian submissions for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film]]
*[[List of Palestinian films]]

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
*{{IMDb title|id=0274428|title=Divine Intervention}}
*{{Rotten Tomatoes|divine_intervention_2003|title=Divine Intervention}}
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20070313092448/http://www.villagevoice.com/film/0304%2Cfahim2%2C41328%2C20.html Village Voice]
*[http://www.offoffoff.com/film/2003/divineintervention.php Offoffoff]
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20060319170334/http://citypaper.net/articles/2002-12-25/movies.shtml Philadelphia City Paper]

{{Elia Suleiman}}
{{Cannes Film Festival Jury Prize}}

[[Category:2002 films]]
[[Category:2000s Arabic-language films]]
[[Category:2000s comedy-drama films]]
[[Category:Palestinian films]]
[[Category:Israeli–Palestinian conflict films]]
[[Category:Films directed by Elia Suleiman]]
[[Category:European Film Awards winners (films)]]
[[Category:Cultural depictions of Yasser Arafat]]
[[Category:2002 comedy films]]
[[Category:2002 drama films]]

Aghaat

2021-03-12T18:24:53Z

108.49.70.67:

{{short description|1985 film}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=November 2015}}
{{Use Indian English|date=November 2015}}
{{Infobox film
| name = Aaghat
| image = Aghaat(1985).jpg
| image_size = 200px
| caption = Film poster
| director = [[Govind Nihalani]]
| producer = [[Manmohan Shetty]]
| writer = Vijay Tendulkar
| narrator =
| starring = [[Naseeruddin Shah]] [[Om Puri]] [[Bharath Gopi]]
| music = [[Vanraj Bhatia]] [[Ajit Varman]]
| cinematography = Govind Nihalani
| editing = Sutanu Gupta
| studio = Neo Films Association
| distributor =
| released = {{Film date|1985|8|29||df=y}}
| runtime =
| country = India
| language = [[Hindi]]
| budget ={{INRConvert|0.56|c|year=1985}}
| gross ={{INRConvert|0.67|c|year=1985}}
}}

'''Aghaat''' (English: Harm) is a [[Bollywood films of 1985|1985]] [[Bollywood]] film directed by [[Govind Nihalani]] and produced by [[Manmohan Shetty]] under the banner of Neo Films Association. It stars [[Om Puri]], [[Naseeruddin Shah]] and [[Bharath Gopi]] in lead roles while [[Amrish Puri]], [[Pankaj Kapur]] and [[Deepa Sahi]] and [[Sarika]] are in supporting roles.<ref>{{cite web|title=Aaghat Cast & Crew|url=http://www.bollywoodhungama.com/moviemicro/cast/id/502814|publisher=Bollywoodhungama}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Aghaat (1985 - Hindi)|url=http://www.gomolo.com/aghaat-movie-cast-crew/5751|publisher=Gomolo|access-date=29 January 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170910180217/http://www.gomolo.com/aghaat-movie-cast-crew/5751|archive-date=10 September 2017|url-status=dead}}</ref>

==Plot Summary==
Madhav Verma ([[Om Puri]]) is a dedicated, honest, and diligent union representative. He represents the majority of the employees in an organization, which recognizes his union. However, there is a rival in the shape and form of Rustom Patel ([[Naseeruddin Shah]]) who is attempting to break the union so as to establish his majority, through his henchman Krishnan ([[Bharat Gopy|Gopi]]), and will not hesitate to stoop to any level to get what he wants. Chhotelal ([[Pankaj Kapoor]]) loses his legs in an accident, and must be hospitalized. Krishnan takes advantage of the situation and puts pressure on Chhotelal and his brothers (Achyut Potdar and Harish Patel) to enroll in his union, and he will get him a higher compensation package than his regular union. Madhav must use his utmost diligence and consistently uphold his principles as they will be put to a test before all logic gives way to violence, anarchy, apathy, and corruption.

==Cast==
*[[Bharath Gopi]] — Krishnan Raju
*[[Om Puri]] — Madhav Verma
*[[Sadashiv Amrapurkar]] — VP Sarnaik
*[[K K Raina]] — Paranjpe
* M K Raina — Dubey
*[[Rohini Hattangadi]] — Mrs. Ali, Social Worker
*[[Pankaj Kapur]] — Chotelal
*[[Naseeruddin Shah]] — Rustom Patel
*[[Deepa Sahi]] — Chotelal's wife
*[[Amrish Puri]] — Chakradev
*Harish Patel — Chotelal brother
*[[Achyut Potdar]] — Chotelal's elder brother

==References==
{{Reflist}}

== External links ==
* {{IMDb title|0177490}}

{{FilmfareCriticsAwardBestMovie}}

[[Category:Indian films]]
[[Category:1980s Hindi-language films]]
[[Category:Hindi-language films]]
[[Category:1985 films]]
[[Category:Films directed by Govind Nihalani]]

{{1980s-Hindi-film-stub}}

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Divine Intervention (film)

Aghaat