For Sama

Review by Malak Altaeb
Review by Tanner Wright

The short: 

A journalist and her husband navigate war-torn Aleppo while raising their newborn daughter, Sama, to whom the film is dedicated.

The long: 
Written, narrated and produced by Waad al-Kateab, a journalist and economics student in Aleppo, this film follows her life from the beginning of the Syrian Civil War in 2011 through five years of conflict in the city. A heartbreaking portrayal of a young mother faced with the impossible choice between fighting for her country and fleeing to protect her newborn daughter, this documentary exposes viewers to the powerful and devastating realities of the Syrian Civil War as they are experienced by the people on the ground. 

Waad Al-Khatib wanted to portray this documentary for her daughter Sama, as she confirmed in the film, but at the same time it is a resounding message to the whole world of what happened in Aleppo, the former beating heart of the Syrian economy, and the rest of the other Syrian cities were killed and destroyed. The movie won many international awards. The story of the film from the viewpoint of director Waad Al-Khatib and her baby daughter, as her family refuses to leave the city for a better future, until you are forced to displace after going through a painful experience. Saying goodbye to their city one last time and the journey to safety. 

To watch or not to watch:

A must watch. An experience of hope and a lot of tears. It is a movie that will open up your eyes to new realities and to see what life is like under the siege of fire in Syria. A humane experience through this movie. 

Watch, because the world should know. Certainly a difficult and painful film to watch, this award-winning documentary shows the human toll of war and the experience of the Syrian people in a way that the world should see with their own eyes in the hope that it may never be repeated.