IMDb RATING
6.7/10
2.7K
YOUR RATING
Salam is a consultant on a popular Palestinian TV series filmed in Ramallah who rather stupidly runs afoul of an Israeli checkpoint commander who uses his military influence to begin to mani... Read allSalam is a consultant on a popular Palestinian TV series filmed in Ramallah who rather stupidly runs afoul of an Israeli checkpoint commander who uses his military influence to begin to manipulate Salam and the writing of the show.Salam is a consultant on a popular Palestinian TV series filmed in Ramallah who rather stupidly runs afoul of an Israeli checkpoint commander who uses his military influence to begin to manipulate Salam and the writing of the show.
- Director
- Writers
- Stars
- Awards
- 13 wins & 16 nominations total
Maisa Abd Elhadi
- Mariam
- (as Maïsa Abd Elhadi)
Yousef 'Joe' Sweid
- General Yehuda Edelman
- (as Yousef Sweid)
- Director
- Writers
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Featured reviews
I really enjoyed this movie. I was laughing all over the cinema. The idea of this movie was great, the actors were good, story was good and ending was hilarious.
I really recommend this movie for all comedy fans.
Salam's uncle is the producer of Tel Aviv on Fire, a spy thriller / soap opera aimed at Palestinians but the show is also popular with Israelis (especially women). Salam is hired as dialect coach, but gets promoted to writer after his meddling causes the chief writer to quit. Salam tries to draw on family and friends for inspiration, but falls under the influence of the commander of the checkpoint he has to cross twice daily. The commander helps with script ideas, but pushes for the show to become more pro-Israeli. Meanwhile, his uncle, and the show's backers, have other ideas, trying to deal with their own trauma of Palestinian losses due to the six-day war.
This is an amusing yarn, with Salam being pulled in all directions by people with different agendas, while trying to fill a script and chasing a girl. Good lightweight entertainment from a film with a Palestine / Israel location.
This is an amusing yarn, with Salam being pulled in all directions by people with different agendas, while trying to fill a script and chasing a girl. Good lightweight entertainment from a film with a Palestine / Israel location.
The laid back subtle and satirical humor is mostly effective here. Somehow, Sameh Zoab, director and co-writer with Don Kleinman, pulls it off despite all the political turmoil that has encased the region for so long now.
The acting is first rate as well, and I thought the surprise and clever ending enhanced the movie. Overall, quite the engaging surprise with its positive message.
The acting is first rate as well, and I thought the surprise and clever ending enhanced the movie. Overall, quite the engaging surprise with its positive message.
A fairly lighthearted but insightful look at life of the middle-class in Jerusalem and Ramallah-- as seen by having a Palestinian screenwriter who lives in Jerusalem travel to work in Ramallah and his daily interactions with the Israeli border-patrol chief..
The film is a little slow, and the main character is made out to be a little too dull, however on the whole the film has a charm and addresses a subject rarely broached. It's an interestingly balanced portrayal of the people on both sides caught in the middle of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. As characters in this film, both the Israeli soldiers and the Palestinian film makers are more human than political agents, and yet both are rooted in their respective historical contexts making it hard to get to the next level of cooperation with each other. The film plays around with alternate narratives.
The film writer/director is actually an Israeli Palestinian, giving the film much authenticity.
The film is a little slow, and the main character is made out to be a little too dull, however on the whole the film has a charm and addresses a subject rarely broached. It's an interestingly balanced portrayal of the people on both sides caught in the middle of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. As characters in this film, both the Israeli soldiers and the Palestinian film makers are more human than political agents, and yet both are rooted in their respective historical contexts making it hard to get to the next level of cooperation with each other. The film plays around with alternate narratives.
The film writer/director is actually an Israeli Palestinian, giving the film much authenticity.
I watched this and I loved it! I really liked the fact that you couldn't predict where it was going. Sure, it wasn't going to end 'badly', like people dying, but the end game as definitely not given up. That's what kept me gripped. The humor is very well done, very subtle, as is the political aspects of this movie. I like that the director wanted to remind people of how life is in the occupied territories, but not in a lecturing manner. And we don't get beaten over the head with it either.
Some people have commented on the portrayal of Salam, and how the actor seems to just be wrong for the role. I beg to differ. I think he's perfect! The whole hilarious aspect of this is that he's kind of bumbling his way to the top. He's very imperfect, and bad things happen to him, but then turn into good things. It's just funny how everything just works out, so that's part of the charm of it. If he was a verbose, charismatic person, it would distract from the soap opera acting on the set within the film.
The best thing about this film is that everyone plays an important part in moving the story forward to the final outcome, even the shopkeeper with the expired canned hummus. No single actor or character steals scenes, everyone plays their parts and does a good job of it. The ending is definitely the best 'twist' ending I've seen in a long time!
Highly recommended if you want to watch a feel-good movie set in a difficult, politically charged environment.
Did you know
- TriviaThe film premiered at the Venice Film Festival on 2 September 2018.
- SoundtracksRaafat Al Haggan music
Written by Ammar El Sherei
- How long is Tel Aviv on Fire?Powered by Alexa
Details
- Release date
- Countries of origin
- Official sites
- Languages
- Also known as
- Tel Aviv on Fire
- Filming locations
- Production companies
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
Box office
- Budget
- €2,700,000 (estimated)
- Gross US & Canada
- $504,443
- Opening weekend US & Canada
- $47,545
- Aug 4, 2019
- Gross worldwide
- $1,809,679
- Runtime1 hour 40 minutes
- Color
- Aspect ratio
- 1.85 : 1
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