Lebanon’s ‘The Insult’ receives Oscar nomination for best foreign language film
The Lebanese film ‘The Insult’ received an Oscar nomination on Tuesday for best foreign language film.
The director of the controversial film, Ziad Doueiri, was criticized for promoting “normalization” with Israel which sparked a wide debate in the Arab World.
‘The Insult’ is based on the events of the Lebanese civil war. Set in the post-war era, it centers around a legal dispute between Christian nationalist Tony, played by Lebanese actor and comedian Adel Karam, and Palestinian refugee Yasser, played by al-Basha.
A disagreement between the men over a water pipe snowballs into a court case and then into a violent, national crisis, opening up a Pandora’s box of old grievances, prejudices, and trauma.
The screening of the film was even banned in Ramallah, while activists planned a protest against the screening and launched a social media campaign urging Palestinians to boycott it.
The movie opened to rave reviews at the Venice Film Festival, earning accolades for its French-Lebanese director Doueiri and a Volpi Cup for al-Basha.
Other films nominated in this category are: ‘A Fantastic woman’ by Chile, ‘Loveless’ by Russia, ‘On Body and Soul’ by Hungary and ‘The Square’ by Sweden.
-With AFP
