International Firm: Omar

Issues in Israel

In the movie of Omar, a major problem that I saw was the huge Israeli-built boundary wall that separates the Palestinians and the Israelis. It is known as the Kalandia wall located in the West Bank of a Palestinian village. The wall puts up a border between the Palestinians and Israelis citizens representing strict restrictions. It makes things harder for family and loved ones to be able to connect and love each other. Also, with the wall that the Israeli government built, it restricts any movement that the Palestinians in the Israeli-occupied territories have.

The Protagonist: Omar

Omar really is a character that is just so engaging. He’s a young Palestinian man, who ends up being a source for his two friends (the Israelis). After much planning, his friends, Tarek and Amjad, plan to execute an Israeli soldier which in the end leads to Omar’s arrest and makes him a valuable informant for Israelis to help them get the leader of the group, Tarek. Sick and tired of how the Israeli soldiers treat him, Omar notified his friend Tarek that he wants to do that Tarek’s brigades plan. Tarek is the planner and leader of the group, Omar hijacks a car for them to proceed with the plan, and Amjad is the gunman in this tactical plan who successfully shoots an Israeli soldier. A young boy warning Omar and his friends about undercover agents. While running away from the undercover agents, Omar runs for his life trying to escape through the back exit of a restaurant, streets, alleyways, and even run through someone’s house. During this scene, you can see how much the Israelis people actually hate the way their country is run by watching kids throwing rocks at the vehicles and even a family providing an exit for Omar to escape through their house.

The Drama in Omar

I was really upset about the outcome of the movie. I was hoping for Omar to get the girl and live happily ever after. As the movie got more in-depth to the storyline, you realize that it’s not about romance, but it’s about the messed-up situations that occur. A quote that really piqued my interest was from the character known as Amjad.

“You know how they catch monkeys in Africa? Hunters throw out sugar cubes so the monkey gets addicted. Then they dig narrow holes and put in lumps of sugar. The monkey comes along, smells the sugar, and sticks its hand in, but the hole is so small that when it makes a fist it can’t pull it back out without dropping the sugar. So the hunters come closer, and the monkey sees them coming. They throw their nets, and the damn monkey still won’t drop the sugar.”

It was such a strange quote, but it a quote that has a lot of meaning to it. Omar is addicted to loving Nadia who is on the other side of the barrier. He visits his addiction no matter what, but once he gets caught by the Israeli government, he becomes a monkey forced to do what the hunters want him to do.

Written by A.O. Scott who did a review for the New York Times says, “Omar is so completely trapped that it becomes difficult to imagine how his story will end, a narrative blockage that symbolizes the larger impasse in which Jews and Arabs, whatever their specific allegiances, now find themselves. ‘Omar’ does not offer the promise of a just or satisfying resolution, a fatalism all the more devastating given its realistic methods and humane, understated performances. The film’s final scene feels shocking and abrupt, but also chillingly inevitable, consistent with the logic of a situation that defies all reason.”

This review is so true that it’s kinda depressing in a way. To me, it’s saying that Omar felt he had no way out other than killing the Agent that kept coming back and holding things over his head. The Agent kept promising him this was it, this was it, and yet he still kept coming back and holding that carrot in front of the rabbit and then yanking it away. I think Omar felt he would never be free unless he did the unimaginable.

Surprising Experiences in Omar

What surprised me the most is that I never once thought about the outrageous differences in how many countries can treat their own people. It gives me a new view of life in other countries, and that every person has their certain breaking points on how they are treated. Being treated like a pebble you kick in the street just because of your religion or race can affect the way of how you see your government. For example in Omar, the Israeli soldiers who did drive by check-ups didn’t act like a true soldier there to protect the people. Instead, the Israeli soldiers acted like they were better than any person who was just walking down a sidewalk and treated them like a monkey. The so-called soldiers threaten Omar with their weapons and tried their hardest to belittle him by making him seem like a fool by standing on a rock while the Israeli soldiers' chit-chat and joked with each other. In America, this would have never happened. If an officer tried to do such a thing, the people of America would probably be in so much distress with all the outcries and protests. I could not imagine having to live this way and dealing with the humiliation of a person with authority insulting me in this manner just to get his kicks.

References

Omar. Dir. Hany Abu-Assad. Palestine, 2013. Film <https://www.netflix.com/watch/70285669>

SCOTT, A. O. "Treachery Thrives Where Trust Withers In 'Omar,' the West Bank Is a Backdrop for Betrayal." The New York Times. 20 Feb. 2014. Web. 28 Dec. 2016. <https://www.nytimes.com/2014/02/21/movies/in-omar-the-west-bank-is-a-backdrop-for-betrayal.html?_r=0>