Your piece on the Brutalist was very insightful - I made sure to read this after I saw it - and your “Drop” was so intriguingly poignant, that I am going through scenes again (since I steamed it I am able to run through it again, run like an emotional marathon! I do believe you have a gift/talent for movie reviews.
However, for “No Other Land,” a Palestinian film nominated for best documentary at the 2025 Academy Awards, this exposure is unlikely to translate into commercial success in the U.S. That’s because the film has been unable to find a company to distribute it in America.
“No Other Land” chronicles the efforts of Palestinian townspeople to combat an Israeli plan to demolish their villages in the West Bank and use the area as a military training ground. It was directed by four Palestinian and Israeli activists and journalists: Basel Adra, who is a resident of the area facing demolition, Yuval Abraham, Hamdan Ballal and Rachel Szor. While the filmmakers have organized screenings in a number of U.S. cities, the lack of a national distributor makes a broader release unlikely.
Film distributors are a crucial but often unseen link in the chain that allows a film to reach cinemas and people’s living rooms. In recent years it has become more common for controversial award-winning films to run into issues finding a distributor. Palestinian films have encountered additional barriers.
As a scholar of Arabic who has written about Palestinian cinema, I’m disheartened by the difficulties “No Other Land” has faced. But I’m not surprised.
I have not seen the film yet. My only comment at this point concerns the notion of Israel as the "only place for Jews to move to." Israel today is not the Israel of its earlier founding days, and its politics have changed, moving much more to the right than it did years ago. Many would find this change offputting.
Your piece on the Brutalist was very insightful - I made sure to read this after I saw it - and your “Drop” was so intriguingly poignant, that I am going through scenes again (since I steamed it I am able to run through it again, run like an emotional marathon! I do believe you have a gift/talent for movie reviews.
What a remarkably fine review and commentary on the movie. When I came out of it my mind was on a rollercoaster of emotions. A must see!
I'm so glad you saw this in the theater. I did too and it was a beautiful, confounded and uncomfortable experience.
a sense of fairness compels me to post this:
A Palestinian film is an Oscars favorite − so why is it so hard to see?
Drew Paul, University of Tennessee
Despite winning awards at festival after festival, the film has been unable to find a company to distribute it in the US.
nd rentals and sales.
However, for “No Other Land,” a Palestinian film nominated for best documentary at the 2025 Academy Awards, this exposure is unlikely to translate into commercial success in the U.S. That’s because the film has been unable to find a company to distribute it in America.
“No Other Land” chronicles the efforts of Palestinian townspeople to combat an Israeli plan to demolish their villages in the West Bank and use the area as a military training ground. It was directed by four Palestinian and Israeli activists and journalists: Basel Adra, who is a resident of the area facing demolition, Yuval Abraham, Hamdan Ballal and Rachel Szor. While the filmmakers have organized screenings in a number of U.S. cities, the lack of a national distributor makes a broader release unlikely.
Film distributors are a crucial but often unseen link in the chain that allows a film to reach cinemas and people’s living rooms. In recent years it has become more common for controversial award-winning films to run into issues finding a distributor. Palestinian films have encountered additional barriers.
As a scholar of Arabic who has written about Palestinian cinema, I’m disheartened by the difficulties “No Other Land” has faced. But I’m not surprised.
I have not seen the film yet. My only comment at this point concerns the notion of Israel as the "only place for Jews to move to." Israel today is not the Israel of its earlier founding days, and its politics have changed, moving much more to the right than it did years ago. Many would find this change offputting.