Great visuals, story delivers no surprises

An action-packed slog

It's hard to see any effort in the film. There's no comedy to speak of, no real drama and, worst of all.

Great movie. Not sure what people expected but I found it highly entertaining.

Film Review: "Paradise Now" (2005)This important independent film presented by already-vanished Warner Bros. Pictures' affiliate Warner Independent Pictures directed by Hany Abu Assad, recently-received international-coverage with survival-drama "The Mountain Between Us" starring Kate Winslet and Idris Elba, takes on the civil terror issues of a remaining melting pot on the Gaza Strip between Hebrew-embedded Israelis and Muslim-religion-indulging Palestinians, here portrayed as family-loving men of action with nevertheless the controversy ongoing mind-set for retaliation, which lets "Paradise Now" stand-out in the ground, who brings the audience near to the inner-conflict in inherited-poisoned hearts of two young men get recruited to take the bus into Israel's major city Tel-Aviv with C4-bombs strapped around their hips, when director Hany Abu Assad, Isreali in his own right, avoids any scene of action nor a single gun-shot to share a super-suspense thriller-drama on the "war-on-terror" between Israel and Palestine, which delivers in engaging scenes of human conflict in a tight image system on how to deal with brainwashed people surrounded by suicide missions, when a sub-plotting sacrifice of a newly-found love between man and woman lingers all through the picture, delicately and minimalistic-shot incorporating ultra-slow dolly push-ins onto intriguing character portrayals by cinematographer Antoine Héberlé to a highly recommended revisit viewing since a world-premiere at Berlin Film Festival in February 2005.© 2018 Felix Alexander Dausend (Cinemajesty Entertainments LLC)

So, I thought this movie was great for the most part. I thought it looked at a very edgy topic that is not talked about all too often and I thought it brought an interesting point of view for western viewers such as Americans and Europeans. I also thought it was cool that the movie tried its best to stay accurate and serious but at the same time still had a few funny moments here and there. The one thing that bothers me though is that it seems to be one sided, though the director says he was keeping an open view on this topic, I just feel we didn't get the whole background of it. I know a lot of people will not like that I feel this way but the movie , in my personal opinion, seemed to be promoting terrorism more than a "freedom fighter" movement. This just really got on my nerves a little bit and I understand nationalism, but I feel that what the Palestinians are doing is more of a terrorist act than a revolutionary act. With that being said though, I still thought the movie was good and interesting, it kept the viewer on the edge of their seats and kept them wanting more. I would totally recommend this to a friend if they were looking for a movie of this genre. 8/10

I absolutely loved this movie. It was so interesting to see it from the Palestinian point of view. I feel like most of the news that comes out of that area is from the Israeli perspective so it was refreshing to have a change. I thought this film was pretty intense, and it had me on the edge of my seat more than a few times. The part that really blew my mind was the fact that the two main characters, Khaled and Saïd, were just normal young men trying to live their lives and provide for their families who were turned into suicide bombers. They both seemed very normal and worked together as auto shop repairmen. Suddenly they got called into action for what I assume had already been discussed with them previously. Initially Khaled is the one who seems all in while Saïd appears very hesitant. When the mission gets interrupted and the two young men have to return to the West Bank, things begin to change. It surprised me the deep passion rooted in both these men to do something to help their people. Before viewing this film, I had never had the ability to even try and comprehend why people would sacrifice themselves to kill others by being a suicide bomber but this film made me understand a bit. Both men seemed to believe that this was their only way to fight back against the Israeli occupation. While I don't necessarily agree with their thought process, I can understand why they would feel this way. I love that this film helped open my mind to see a completely different perspective that I would not have had a way of understanding otherwise. Overall I give it 4.5/5 stars.

Watch this if....understanding the mind and motives of a terrorist is intriguing. This is a very well made film that will open your eyes.Acting/Casting: 8* - Being a foreign film, I am not familiar with the cast, but I do believe they do a superb job. I would argue that the lead roles are played as well as any I have seen.Directing/Cinematography/Technical: 7* - This is a perfect example of a crew that squeezed every dime out of their budget and made a terrific film. It keeps you intrigued, but at the same time doesn't wow you with any special effects, etc.Plot/Characters: 7* - Two friends are chosen to carry out a suicide bombing mission, but things don't go quite as planned. It is likely that this film depicts the mind and motives of a terrorist more than any other I have seen.Entertainment Value: 6* - While the movie is a great look at terrorism and the motives, they are some slow spots. Overall I found it entertaining, but I can see where some less dedicated viewers might lose interest.My Score: 8+7+7+6 = 28/4 = 7.0Email your thoughts to filmwatchinfool@gmail.com