Alla mia piccola sama

Terrifying, Devastating and, Surprisingly, outstanding documentation about the horrific Siege of Aleppo in 2016.

For Sama received a standing ovation at its world premiere at Austin's SXSW Film Festival. It also received the Grand Jury Prize for Documentary Feature. It is a remarkable film. Each of us tries to go through his/her daily life and pretend there is no place in the world where human beings are being routinely slaughtered as occurred in Aleppo. Waad Al-Khateab is a hero. She and her husband - a doctor - stayed in Aleppo through the worst of the siege. He saved lives and she documented the horrors for the world to see. For Sama presents some of the most unflinching war coverage that I have seen. The beauty of the film is that she presents it as almost a love letter to her infant daughter Sama who was born in Aleppo in the months leading up to the siege. She is trying to tell her story and the story of her city (one of the oldest continuously populated cities on the planet). The contrast between the horror of parents try to care and protect an infant while simultaneously trying to save lives and document the horror is breathtaking and heart-wrenching. It is as if you set a love story amidst the flames of hell. This is a story that needs to be widely viewed and it will be since it has been picked up by PBS and will air on Frontline in the coming months. Everyone who loves children and hates war (and I really hope that is everyone) should see this film.

This film looks at the war in Syria through an entirely new lens. Its footage and narrative is chilling and thought-provoking. I'm not surprised at all that the film won both "Best Documentary" and the "Audience Award - Best Documentary" at the 2019 SXSW Film Festival. It deserves those accolades and more.

There a moment in this film a baby which will probably make you feel more strongly than any other movie in the history of the films you've seen.

For Sama is not a film. It's rather a complete work of art. Highly recommended watching it and changing your typical heroes to Waad, Hamza, Afraa, and the rest of the angle guys. Can't recommend it enough. With respect and love ❤