97. Capernaum; movie review

CAPERNAUM
Cert 15
126 mins
BBFC advice: Contains strong language, references to child abuse, drug misuse

A handful of times a year, a new movie has such a realistic feel that it could be mistaken for a documentary.
Nadine Labaki's stunning Capernaum is such a film.
In my view, it is way way better than Roma, which beat it to the Best Foreign Language Film Oscar.
It stars Zain Al Rafeea as Zain, a 12-year-old who has been jailed for stabbing a man near his home in the slums of Beirut.
The movie is told in flashbacks as the boy is back in court, suing his parents for child neglect.
Zain's life and that of his sister (Cedra Izam) is horribly difficult as they literally beg and steal to stay alive but at least they have each other.
Their feckless parents (Kawthar Al Haddad and Fadi Kamel Youssef) show them little love as they settle for an ambition-free life of rearing children in squalor.
And then when she has her first period at the age of 11, they see the opportunity for a fast buck by selling their daughter into marriage to a middle-aged man.
Zain tries his best but is helpless to prevent the deal and, subsequently, runs away, further into Beirut's netherworld of illegal immigrants and exploitation.
There he meets an Ethiopian (Yordanos Shiferaw) who takes him in, even though her plight is even more desperate than his.
It is difficult to judge what is most impressive about Capernaum - is it the fantastic acting of the children, the sublime direction which makes the movie so realistic or the attention to detail with the backdrops?
The answer is probably all three.
By its end, Mrs W and I felt as if we had been in Lebanon with poor Zain and were desperate for the adults who preyed on children to have their comeuppance.
And yet, within the movie's misery, there are many moments of tenderness or even joy. These combine to make Capernaum even more thought-provoking.
It is a truly remarkable movie.

Reasons to watch: Likely to be one of the films of the year
Reasons to avoid: Upsetting scenes

Laughs: None
Jumps: None
Vomit: Yes
Nudity: None
Overall rating: 9.5/10

Did you know? The Lebanese government’s Crisis Response Plan aims to reduce child marriage by 20% by 2020. The Lebanese Higher Council for Childhood is leading development of a national strategy and action plan to specifically address child marriage but Hezbollah (Shi’a militant group and political party) is strongly opposed to any efforts to address child marriage.

The final word. Nadine Labaki: “There are millions and millions of children who live like this. It is a crime that we don’t do more for them.”

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