It is said that Beirut was once the Paris of the Middle East. During the civil war, it became the Sarajevo of the Middle East. Afterwards, it was the Prague of the Middle East. Before the battle, religion was irrelevant to a person's integrity and overall, people loved each other so much more. When war broke, the only thing the Muslims and Christians could agree on was Fairuz--popular artist and musical goddess.
This documentary interviews people who grew up on her music and shared the same love for their nation that she did. Her music held together whatever scraps of Lebanon left. Her music is timely and poetic. Universal. Undeniably benevolent and positive in a world where negativity rules.
Filmed beautifully with obvious dramatic rehearsals, it makes great use of its' interviewees, as well as the nation's geography. Both its beauty and deformity. The talking heads are charming and insightful, at times tragic and hopeless. They look back at a time where their was something to lose. Meanwhile todays generation experiences only the bottom remains and sees nothing lost.
But by listening to the music of Fairuz, they can taste, we can taste, the sweet flavor of a country thriving on equality and free will.
