Al-hadiya

The Present is a Palestinian short film that takes a very simple scenario of a man living in the West Bank who sets out with his daughter to buy his wife an anniversary gift, against the many checkpoints and surveillances that come with being a Palestinian.

The success of this movie is that it doesn't try to showcase the horrors of the occupation, rather a more relatable scenario that can be empathized with universally, using that to share what it's like to be on the receiving end of the occupation. It's a movie that I feel everyone should watch, and is one I would wholeheartedly recommend.

Greetings again from the darkness. It may look like the crowd filing out of a sports arena after a big match, but in fact, it's actual footage of an Israeli checkpoint in Palestine along the West Bank. Another big difference ... heavily armed soldiers and cages to detain those while identification is checked.

This is the life writer-director Farah Nabulsi shows us in her 23 minute gem of a short film. She focuses on Yusef (an excellent Saleh Bakri), a man struggling to make ends meet for his wife and young daughter. Today is his wedding anniversary and he agrees to take daughter Yasmine (Miriam Kanj) along on a shopping trip. She witnesses her dad battle severe back pain, as well as the frustrations in dealing with the armed guards at the checkpoint - even as he endures the humiliation of being caged in front of her.

Yusef is a good man and strives to protect his daughter and shield her from the tension and danger - often through humor or a warm embrace. Something as simple as replacing a fridge on the fritz is part of the daily struggle for folks like Yusef. Sometimes it takes the courage and reasonableness of a youngster to highlight the irrational rules that have taken over the world. The film has a grounded, realistic feel, and delivers a sobering message.

Most of the series that talks about the Palestinian-Israeli conflict are biased to Israel, but this film shows a part of the humiliation and suffering Palestinian face every day at Israeli checkpoints. Looking forward more like this in the future.

A 24 mins that will keep you on the edge of your seat as you get to experience a glimpse of the protagonist's perspective as he suffers just to get his wife...an anniversary present.

The film's introduction builds a connection between audience members and the characters of the short film just through one scene. With the help of the production design, our first look at the three characters that the story revolves around takes place at their house in a small bedroom where they share a cute family moment. As well as, cute husband and wife moment that tells us the relationship that the married couple have and the struggles they face. Thanks to this short introduction, an empathy is created in our hearts that carries on till the end of the struggling short trip that the protagonist makes.

Watched on: November 26th, 2023 My rating: 9/10.

The Present is a heartbreaking film that illustrates the reality of the israeli occupation in Palestine. In this short film, the director was able to brilliantly capture the essence of the inhumane israeli occupation of Palestinians by demonstrating its unjust treatment of Palestinian citizens and showcasing the checkpoints, segregated roads, constant interrogation and continuous armed inspection that Palestinians must go through every single day when performing tasks as simple as going shopping in their town. The film also sheds light on the physical and mental repercussions of this occupation on the men, women and especially children who suffer because of it.