blessed benefit
blessed benefit, dir. mahmoud al massad (clip) | international competition - youtube
“blessed benefit” premiered at the toronto international film festival. international sales will be handled by beta cinema .
in “blessed benefit” the lead character is played by ahmad thaher, whose real - life story inspired the film .
al massad keeps the narrative trajectory off - kilter, allowing blessed benefit to be diagnostic while avoiding prescriptivism. frequently hilarious !
besides the ‘blessed benefit’ of being in jail, another comic element of the film are visualizations of ahmad’s nightmares while behind bars .
blessed is a powerful and truthful movie experience that lingers long after the end .
a tad bloated and uncompromisingly bleak, blessed is buoyed by its impressive ensemble cast .
an accomplished and likable comedy (the hollywood reporter) al massad keeps the narrative trajectory off - kilter, allowing blessed benefit to be diagnostic while avoiding prescriptivism. frequently hilarious! (cinema scope )
one of the ironies of “blessed benefit” is that the character played by ahmad eventually finds himself more comfortable and free inside the prison than in his everyday life. so, what sort of reputation do jordanian jails and jordanian police actually have ?
blessed is uneven and overall not as good as kokkinos' s other films but it nevertheless contains some of her best work to date .
al massad, who lives in the netherlands, moved back to jordan to make “blessed benefit. ” he’d always wanted to return to his country but, despite the boost that naji abu nowar’s oscar - nominated theeb has supposedly given jordanian cinema, his return home actually coincided with decreasing opportunities for filmmakers in the region .
blessed' s relentless melodrama means the situations feel staged and stereotypical and both the mothers and children for the most part become painful, charmless annoyances who we want to go home to avoid .
blessed with cinematic ambition, ana kokkinos and her writing collaborators have forged a striking film out of pain and dysfunction, yet managing to pull out a serene sense of closure in the final moments .
the film is directed by mahmoud al massad. he previously directed two feature - length documentaries: “recycle, ” which follows an ex - mujahadi fighter struggling to make a living in jordan, and “this is my picture when i was dead, ” a free - form profile of bashir mraish, son of assassinated plo fighter mamoun mraish, who was almost killed as a 4 - year - old along with his father. “blessed benefit” is his first fiction film .
blessed is a rich, unsettling vision of the mother - child relationship, by the end, it is clear that things are not always as they seem. sometimes it' s a reversal of expectations, sometimes an unpredictable consequence .
the inmates are well individualized in a few swift strokes. mor (maher khammash) is the cell boss whose emotional fragility ahmad immediately ferrets out. when ahmad tells him why he’s in jail, mor asks, “did you benefit? ” the answer is no, as it would be for everyone else in the cell, and crime really doesn’t seem to pay very well in jordan. yet it often seems to be the only way to make ends meet .
well, it' s hard to find anything blessed about the lives in this australian drama. the writers have woven a whole bunch of stories together from children and mothers viewpoints and every one of those stories is adding to the hard and dark atmosphere of the movie. social study which is depressing but truethful... very good acting and the directing improved in the second part of the film... typical aussie movie !
no fewer than ten dutch productions and co - productions have been selected for the upcoming edtion of the toronto international film festival (tiff) .
competition section. the film, produced by topkapi films, is about layla (18), a dutch girl with moroccan roots, who joins a group of radical muslims. she encounters a world that nurtures her ideas initially, but finally confronts her with an impossible choice. sales are handled by beta cinema. it' s not the first time mijke de jong is selected for toronto. her previous films
. the thriller, produced by n279 entertainment (nl) and x - filme (de) (sales: embankment films), will first celebrate its world premiere at the venice international film festival, where it will be in the running for a golden lion in main competition .
century in the american west. an epic thriller told in four chapters about a young women and her family whose lives change drastically when a diabolical preacher comes to town .
. the story revolves around the filmmaker and his decade long quest not only to overcome the intercultural misunderstandings and failed expectations between him and his long absent tunisian father, but also to repair the relationship with his dutch mother. the documentary premiered earlier this month at locarno in the
competition. the short, which was selected for cannes' directors' fortnight, tells the story of a young bosnian refugee family who, after obtaining a residence permit in 1994, arrive in a small village in the netherlands. absurd situations arise as the family members try to make this new world their home .
furthermore five minority dutch co - productions have also been selected for toronto. thomas vinterberg' s
some parts of this page won' t work property. please reload or try later .
ahmad a construction worker gets tangled up in an unfortunate business deal leading him to prison. he meets fraudster ibrahim who ruins his last hope to prove his innocence. ahmad is... see full summary »
lakeith stanfield and his sorry to bother you crew reveal their most soul - crushing jobs in our freewheeling interview .
want to share imdb' s rating on your own site? use the html below .
ahmad a construction worker gets tangled up in an unfortunate business deal leading him to prison. he meets fraudster ibrahim who ruins his last hope to prove his innocence. ahmad is awakened by the realisation that life in prison might be better than the one he has on the outside .
explore popular sci - fi movies and tv shows available to stream with prime video .
فيلم the worthy و la la land و محبس و إن شالله استفدت... كام من عشرة؟
stay on top of the latest breaking film and tv news! sign up for our email newsletters here .
sign up: stay on top of the latest breaking film and tv news! sign up for our email newsletters here .
eric kohn and anne thompson discuss their favorite films of the year so far. they also debate several new releases and share some streaming recommendations .
in an episode dedicated to the show within the show, “glow” illustrates its grand capacity for storytelling, and the very good tv podcast breaks down how .
rules weren’t meant to be broken when it comes to tv episode lengths, but these 10 examples — introduced on the very good tv podcast — are clear exceptions .
after studying under cinematographer ed lachman, shevaun mizrahi forged her own unique filmmaking path with its own set of rules .
the actress and director both love the genre, but as they told indiewire, they also knew it needed to be retrofitted to tell the true story of catherine weldon and sitting bull .
lane and schoenbrun discuss how her interest in morgellons disease patients (“the pain of others”) and his exploration of the slenderman myth (“a self - induced hallucination”) led them to make archival films from youtubes .
an oldster is convicted of small - time fraud in jordanian director mahmoud al massad' s ironic look at prison life .
poor, scrawny but far from stupid, ahmad has an unruffled calm and a delight in putting his nose in other people’s business that is funny in itself. he asks everyone what they’re in jail for. spying, terrorism, fraud. some white collar types answer, “we’re the stock market guys. ” “you did a great job, ” ahmad shoots back without batting an eye .
though the prison scenes, which make up the bulk of the film, allow for few variations, cinematographer georges mihelis brings such warmth and imagination to lighting faces there is always something interesting to watch. four international editors ensure things proceed at a fast clip on this german - jordan - netherlands coprod .
ahmad, a construction worker, gets tangled up in an unfortunate business deal that lands him in prison. he meets ibrahim, a fraudster who ruins his last hope of proving his innocence. ahmad is awakened by the realisation that the life he has in prison might be better than the one he has on the outside .
learn to be a filmmaker, refine your existing skills, become a contributor or simply stay up - to - date with our newsletter or our social networks .
html public
- / / w3c / / dtd xhtml 1. 0 strict / / en
urltoken
your search is being processed... thank you for waiting ...
ahmad gets tangled up in an unfortunate business deal that lands him in prison. but life in prison might not be that bad .
ahmad, a construction worker, is arrested for using a client' s down payment to help his cousin in a deal involving 10 brand - new laptops and the hopes to make a small profit from it .
due to customs procedures, the imported laptops are not released in time. unable to do the job or pay the money back, ahmad is sentenced to three months in prison for fraud .
far from all the obligations of the outside world, where food and drink are not a worry, where new friendships are struck, and where no cell phones are ringing, ahmad gradually feels something that he' s never felt before – liberty. halfway through his sentence his biggest worry becomes losing this liberty after his release and, above all, having to deal with a bigger debt…
this site uses cookies. by using this site you are agreeing to our privacy and cookie policy .
dir: mahmoud al massad. 2016. germany / jordan / netherlands / qatar. 83 mins
ahmad (ahmad thaher), a builder with a sideline in under - the - table activities, finds himself facing the impenetrable maze of the jordanian legal system when one minor crime catches up with him. ahmad argues to the judge, to the arresting officer, to anyone within earshot that it’s a misunderstanding and that he fully intends to pay back the money he owes, just as soon as a little cash - flow problem has been ironed out. but the judge briskly seals his fate. “you were paid to build a wall. you didn’t build a wall. three months. ”
ahmad’s lovable roguish tendencies are established from the outset, with a nice little scene in which a botched attempt to syphon electricity from the neighbourhood power cables plunges his entire apartment block into darkness. he lies effortlessly to his wife (not so much a character, more a checklist of nagging spouse clichés) in order to get out of visiting her parents. instead, he smokes, gambles and plays cards with his buddies on the roof .
he accepts his arrest, along with almost everything else that life throws at him, with a fatalistic shrug and a quizzically raised eyebrow. he is liked by almost everyone he meets, from the policeman who questions him about how to set up a facebook account, to the chief of his overcrowded cell. grey haired, bespectacled and dentally challenged, ahmad earns the nickname old man. but with it comes a respect that perhaps is lacking outside the walls of the prison .
episodic in structure, intimate in focus, the film sometimes feels like a list of male bonding moments. the prisoners sunbathe and banter in the yard; they dance in their cell to arabic pop on television. and the closest thing to a dramatic climax – ahmad’s encounter with the man who is, indirectly, responsible for his current incarceration, is over in a brief scene .
performances tend towards the broad, however thaher, a non - professional actor whose real - life experiences inspired the film, brings an authenticity that goes beyond his alarming teeth. soundtrack choices are the kind which will most appeal to the local audience. further afield, the music, like the humour, might feel a little unsophisticated .
a russian teen endures a deeply troubled relationship with his mother in ivan i. tverdovskiy’s latest
screen international is the essential resource for the international film industry. subscribe now for monthly editions, awards season weeklies, access to the screen international archive and supplements including stars of tomorrow and world of locations .
asked why he decided to move into fiction, al massad says he doesn’t think there is any difference between fiction and documentary films, in that they both basically tell a story. he says the only difference is the approach he takes. “in fiction, you work on a script, and in documentary you work on following [ the course ] of daily events back and forth to create the full story, ” he notes .
and which approach does he prefer? “it’s hard to say, because i love both, ” he answers .
the inherent risk in making a documentary, of course, is that the story might take an unplanned course. “in fiction, you have no limit to what you can create and you are in control of the outcome, ” al massad notes. “the tough part, after writing a good script, is finding the right character or person to deliver the message of the story. ”
al massad says he’s known ahmad for over two decades and always dreamt of making a film about him “because he’s such an interesting and very positive character, no matter what comes his way or happens around him. ”
in real life ahmad, who worked as a contractor, has spent three months in prison “for taking 1800 jordanian dinars (about $ 2, 540. 00) and not delivering the job he was asked to do from a client, ” al massad notes. that is exactly what happens in the film .
“the police are friendly and helpful, ” says al massad. “in terms of prisons, i have visited and scouted several in jordan and i noticed how they treat prisoners humanely, unlike what we see or hear of in other countries worldwide, ” he adds .
working with them was very challenging, but “they were very eager to be part of the film and this is why i believe they brought honesty into their performance, ” he notes .
shooting them required a lot of preparation “in order for them to have the same look as the rest of the film, ” al massad recounts. with his cinematographer they decided to shoot these scenes in sequential order so they could begin with a realistic feel and subsequently veer into fantasy .
“there are less than a handful arab funds left to support filmmaking, ” he laments .
nevertheless, al massad already has a new project in the works. he is working on an new narrative feature project for the international market which he hopes to shoot in dubai, where the story takes place .
© copyright 2018 variety media, llc, a subsidiary of penske business media, llc. variety and the flying v logos are trademarks of variety media, llc. powered by urltoken vip
if a fish hadn' t opened its mouth it wouldn' t have been caught .
abu dhabi film commission shasha grant global film initiative award – usa arte award for best pitch at dubai film festival - dubai film connection selected for cannes film festival' s program l' atelier 2012 .
ahmad, a construction worker gets tangled up in an unfortunate business deal leading him to prison. he meets fraudster khaled, who ruins his last hope to prove his innocence. ahmed is awaken by the realization that life in prison might be better than one that he has on the outside .
a wry, tongue - in - cheek tale about a construction contractor implicated in an unfortunate business deal that lands him in jail. ironically, once in prison, he gradually feels something that he' s never felt before—liberty. “an accomplished and likeable comedy for mideast film fans. ” the hollywood reporter
in this wry, tongue - in - cheek tale, ahmad, an ultra - laid back construction contractor who loves a good game of cards, gets tangled up in an unfortunate business deal. he uses a client' s down payment to help his cousin import 10 brand - new laptops and hopes to make a small profit from it .
an accomplished and likeable comedy for mideast film fans .
deborah young, the hollywood reporter
1700 e. tahquitz canyon way, suite 3 palm springs ca 92262 usa telephone: 1. 760. 322. 2930 toll free (usa): 1. 800. 898. 7256 info @ urltoken
© copyright 2017 palm springs international film society. all rights reserved. privacy policy
html public
- / / w3c / / dtd xhtml 1. 0 transitional / / en
urltoken
please fill out your email. a link to reset your password will be sent to you .
ahmad, a construction worker gets tangled up in an unfortunate business deal that sends him to prison. he meets fraudster ibrahim who ruins his last hope to prove his innocence. ahmad is awakened by the realisation that life in prison might be better than the one that he has on the outside .
the tomatometer score — based on the opinions of hundreds of film and television critics — is a trusted measurement of critical recommendation for millions of fans. it represents the percentage of professional critic reviews that are positive for a given film or television show .
movies and tv shows are certified fresh with a steady tomatometer of 75% or higher after a set amount of reviews (80 for wide - release movies, 40 for limited - release movies, 20 for tv shows), including 5 reviews from top critics .
unforgiving in its shrewd relentlessness, the cast is flawless as is the direction .
some fine talent manages to rise above flimsy scenarios in this multi - thread expose of low - rent melbourne mothering and its bitter legacy. surely the whole truth would call for some rays of light in these shabby lives ?
a slow - burning, emotionally haunting film that thrusts the bond between mother and child under a microscope .
kokkinos is never backward in confronting her audience, but she' s also a sensitive portrayer of emotions that are basic to us all and with this marvellous film she has created her best work so far .
skilfully woven together, the separate tales that eventually intersect portray a touching look at the relationship between mothers and children.
blessed benefit is a 2016 internationally co-produced drama film directed by mahmoud al massad . it was selected to be screened in the discovery section at the 2016 toronto international film festival . 
blessed benefit is a 2016 internationally co-produced drama film directed by mahmoud al massad. it was selected to be screened in the discovery section at the 2016 toronto international film festival.
blessed benefit is a 2016 internationally co-produced drama film directed by mahmoud al massad. it was selected to be screened in the discovery section at the 2016 toronto international film festival.