Captain Abu Raed

Reviewed by Elliot V. Kotek
(from the 2008 Sundance Film Festival)

Director: Amin Matalqa
Starring: Nadim Sawalha, Rana Sultan, Hussein Al-Sous, Udey Al-Qiddissi, Ghandi Saber, Dina Raad-Yaghnam
Arabic with English subtitles

Captain Abu Raed is not only a wonderful film but is representative of the ultimate objective of film festivals at large - to leave the world a little less ignorant and a little more understanding. Sundance's presentation of Jordan's first dramatic feature in 50 years boasts a revealing narrative and locations little seen outside political circumstances, exposing not only Jordan's scenic beauty but the prejudices and historical hierarchy that scar its society.

The tale focuses on a widower janitor, Abu Raed, whose experiences of the world are limited to lessons learned from literature and cursory interactions in Amman's international airport, and who finds a portal to life in the trash in the form of a captain's hat. Innocently believing the owner of the hat to have the profile of its predecessor, the children of Raed's poor neighborhood believe him to be a well-heeled pilot, and impose on him to regale them with tales of his travels. Despite the fact he's never truly flown, he imbues in them the hope that fantastic life adventures are achievable despite their socio-economic status.

While this story alone would be more than enough to hold the audience's attention, director/writer Amin Matalqa meanders the film (somewhat unexpectedly at first) into darker territory - and his journey proves well worth the price of admission as he deftly explores domestic violence, the importance of education, familiar familial pressures toward marriage, and the jealousies bred by childhood peers.

Raed, in fact, despite a lack of material possessions, does seem to live at the top of the world; reachable via hundreds of steps, his apartment features a terrace that provides a view to the horizons that would otherwise be out of reach. Although this allows him to dream about the greater universe, his discovery of the Captain's hat gives him the bravado necessary to steer his neighbors toward a hopeful future. Matalqa has succeeded in adding color to previously gray lives, but the soulful characters who helped him craft this story, and the soft-toned cinematography provided by his lensman, commandingly embrace us into his world and engage us, also, to hope for a better future. -MPM

The first dramatic independent feature film to come out of Jordan in the last 50 years, Captain Abu Raed was conceived from a challenge given by Emmy Award-winning executive producer David Pritchard ("The Simpsons," "King of the Hill," "Family Guy") to Jordanian-born writer/director Amin Matalqa and co-producer/editor Laith Al-Majali:  "To write an original Arab language feature film that Charlie Chaplin would star in!"

Awards
• Dramatic World Cinema Audience Award - 2008 Sundance Film Festival
• Best Actor (Nadim Sawalha) and Best Actress (Rana Sultan) Awards - 2008 Newport Beach Film Festival
• Best Director Golden Space Needle Award (Amin Matalqa) - 2008 Seattle International Film Festival
• Best Narrative Feature World Cinema - 2008 Maui Film Festival
• Best Actor (Nadim Sawalha) Award - 2007 Dubai International Film Festival

Images courtesy of Paper & Pen Films.

Check out MPM's exclusive From-the-Filmmaker "Bringing Captain Abu Raed to Life" by writre/director Amin Matalqa.

Filmography links and data courtesy of Internet Movie Database.