Capharnaüm / Capernaum
Review by Grace Landsberg and Ruhama Bekele
The short:
After running away from his abusive parents, 12-year-old Zain El Hajj aimlessly wanders the slums of Beirut before suing his parents for the day he was born.
The long:
Renowned actress and director Nadine Labaki of Caramel (Sukkar Banat) makes a cameo in her most recent movie Capharnaüm (Capernaum), a heartbreaking story about a boy named Zain. Set in the slums of Beirut, the story is told as a flashback, opening with Zain’s arrest. The film quickly reveals the indigent conditions Zain’s parents have brought him into. Zain is disappointed by the inability of every adult in his life to keep him safe. He feels angry for being brought into a world where he is unwanted. Labaki includes many nonactors in the film.
Having been raised in an impoverished household with an abusive mother and a negligent father, Zain spends his youth assisting shopkeepers for a living instead of attending school. Although everyone in the family is put to work, their poverty pushes his parents to sell his younger sister into marriage to an older man, a decision that leads to Zain running away from home. Shortly after, he meets an undocumented Ethiopian migrant worker named Rahil and her infant son, Yonas. In exchange for watching over her son when she goes to work, Rahil essentially adopts Zain. Rahil, however, doesn’t return one day, and Zain now has to provide for a toddler in the streets of Beirut.
To watch or not to watch?
An absolute must-watch! Capernaum is the highest-grossing Middle Eastern film of all time. However, be sure to have a box of tissues nearby. The story is emotional and heavy.
Watch! The film’s realistic depiction of poverty, juvenile delinquency, and undocumented immigration in Lebanon is eye-opening to the political and economic conditions that plague Lebanon today. What makes Capernaum so special is that rather than focusing on powerful political figures or rich Lebanese citizens, the plot revolves around an ordinary kid trying to navigate the complexities of a collapsing country. By following Zain’s life, the film touches on many sociopolitical issues that can be expected in the daily lives of ordinary Lebanese civilians.