Divine Intervention

Divine Intervention, released in 2002, is a movie that is as compelling as it is mystifying, directed by Palestinian filmmaker Elia Suleiman. Renowned for his signature style of filmmaking, Suleiman brings together real-life experiences with surrealistic elements to create a thoughtful and introspective exploration of the Israel-Palestine conflict.

The movie stars Elia Suleiman himself as "E.S.," a character based in part on Suleiman's own self, standing as a mute observer to the events unfolding around him; the remarkable Manal Khader as the unnamed Woman who carries an air of enigma and charm; and George Ibrahim, who impeccably plays the role of the dying Father.

Divine Intervention is primarily a series of vignettes, each an anecdote reflecting on the lives of Palestinians living in and around Nazareth, in the northern part of Israel and centering on the love affair between E.S. and his lover from Ramallah, a city in the occupied West Bank. The movie cleverly portrays the contrast between their love, filled with passion, and the harsh situation of their surroundings, under Israeli control. Their relationship takes the center stage in the narrative, and yet, paradoxically, it is wordless, full of silence yet rife with powerful meanings.

The fact that the couple themselves live in separate cities that are checkpoints apart adds another layer of complexity to their relationship as those checkpoints also symbolically represent division and the strife of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict itself. Their usual meeting spot is a desolate parking lot near an Israeli checkpoint, reminiscent of a ‘no man’s land’.

Suleiman extends his film beyond simple storytelling into the realm of a visual poem, laced with dark humor and ironical tones. His lead character, E.S., is mostly silent throughout the movie, expressive merely through his austere face and communicative eyes. The narrative does not follow a traditional format, but the episodic events nevertheless effectively convey the story's underlying thoughts and elements of symbolism.

Within the movie, Suleiman introduces a string of eccentric characters who add a touch of surrealistic humor while reflecting the morose reality of their existence. There's the aging father who is fighting a losing battle with his health, the Santa Claus figure who's stabbed in the city of Nazareth, and residents of a neighborhood who are continually in a petty conflict with each other, throwing trash into each other's yards.

In a notable departure from the everyday, mundane scenes, the film features an enticing sequence that has been dubbed the "ninja sequence," involving Khader's character. This not only adds an unexpected twist of fantasy and mythical realism to the narrative but also presents a symbolic resistance against the oppressor.

The cinematography, handled by Marc-André Batigne, paints a striking portrait of the landscape, tracing the grim underbelly of the region against its beautiful backdrop. This is complemented by the spectral score that imbues the scenes with an atmospheric touch. The resulting effect is a film that seems to operate at the intersection of tragedy and comedy, reality and fantasy, showing the harsh realities of the world while also skirting the edges of the absurd and the fantastical.

While Divine Intervention has been criticized by some for its lack of a coherent narrative or conventional plot-points, it is clear that Suleiman doesn't aim at direct storytelling. Instead, he organizes scenes that act as snippets of life in the disputed territories, trying to get across the feeling of tension, frustration, and absurdity that tends to permeate life there.

The movie allows its audience to wonder, interpret, and come up with personal understandings of the symbolisms and allegories represented. It uses silence to say the unspeakable, allegories to represent the unrepresented, and humor to reflect the sad irony of the citizens' lives, not shying away from its political overtone. Its unique charm lies in its quiet observational humor interspersed with surreal moments of fantasy.

In essence, Divine Intervention contemplates the inexplicable love amidst a war-ridden ethereal landscape. Through a lens of humor, resignation, love, and sorrow, it mirrors the Israeli-Palestinian conflict's complex realities and sentiments. It seeks not to give answers or solutions to the problem but merely reflects on the situation, throwing light on the bizarre yet human aspects of living amidst such conflict.