Head of Reviews Robert Flynn discusses the importance of Palestinian representation in Farah Nabulsi’s The Teacher
Filmed during the summer of 2022, Farah Nabulsi’s The Teacher (2024) predates the events of October 7th by over a year. As a result, Nabulsi’s tense drama represents much more than was originally anticipated. The Teacher not only highlights the atrocities and inhumanities enacted upon Palestinians in a contemporary context but also shows that these horrific circumstances are not a new occurrence; they have been happening in the most unnervingly casual manner for decades.
The titular ‘teacher’ Basem (Saleh Bakri) is a stoic middle aged Palestinian man who takes an invested interest in two brothers in his English class, Adam (Muhammad Abed Elrahman) and Yacoub (Mahmood Bakri). Basem wishes to instil a sense of direction in these two teenagers' lives despite the destruction of their home and the numerous injustices which they have both faced.
As this relationship develops and deepens, Basem reluctantly agrees to take an American hostage into his home due to his ties to a political resistance group. As Basem’s worlds begin to collide, his nonviolent acts of resistance begin to threaten his romantic relationship with an English woman named Lisa (Imogen Poots) and his ability to keep both Adam and Yacoub on the right path.
Tragedy is frequent for Basem, Adam and Yacoub. A corrupt Israeli justice system, the belligerent attitudes of Israeli settlers, and Israeli enforcement are prevalent forces in their lives. The arbitrary attacks and acts of aggression initiated by Israeli settlers and establishments replete our characters with justified anger. Director Nabulsi, does not let this tragedy and anger define her characters. Each person feels dimensional and lived-in. They all have aspirations, a family, a past; all elements that exist and persist beyond these socio-political issues. An impressive feat which Nabulsi masters in her film is the ability to begin a scene with an air of extreme frustration, methodically fold back the emotional layers then ending on a sense of tenderness and vulnerability.
Nabulsi is comfortable with sitting in a scene, pulling her character's vulnerability out slowly. The camerawork and performances are quite subdued and mellow. Through this, Nabulsi builds a true sense of familiarity between the audience and the characters; we become attuned to their behaviours and gestures. The film chooses to not heighten any events through formal elements intentionally. The camera will often stay still or refuse to excite the audience as, to Basem or Adam or Yacoub, a day of intensive pressure or demolition is a daily occurrence.
In a Q&A after a screening of the film in Dublin’s Lighthouse Theatre, lead actor Saleh Bakri proved to be as compelling a presence off-screen as he was on it.
He spoke of his personal experiences in Palestine; near-death encounters and his rights as a Palestinian, each caused and determined by Israeli enforcement. He spoke with an extreme ease and comfort about these anecdotes, often breaking the tension with a witty remark. It was evident that Bakri felt a personal bond to the characters in the film and the unrestrained injustices which they faced.
The representation of these injustices was something that both Bakri and director Nabulsi spoke about during the Q&A. Nabulsi was poised and spoke with pointed eloquence about the current turmoil in Gaza and how she was compelled to make this film, to express her frustrations “through [her] art”. The Teacher is a moving film that will continue to prove that with art there is representation and with representation there is chance for progress.