Why so much hype?

All of these films share one commonality, that being a kind of emotional center that humanizes a cast of monsters.

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

One of the film's great tricks is that, for a time, you think it will go down a rabbit hole of unrealistic glorification.

The only thing about this movie that is worthy of a recommendation are the nice location shots. I've never been to Israel or the Palestinian territories, so it was nice to see a modern view of this always-in-the-news region. But, story-wise, this film is a mediocre effort. The pace is agonizingly slow and anti-climactic as the heroine that we're supposed to care about locates her true love halfway through the movie and then we're forced to follow this uninteresting couple as they try to round up the family and have a quick wedding ceremony. There is a movie here. It's a young girl's journey to check out each and every one of the potential (and father-approved) suitors on the list. One charming moment in the film was when the girl and her boyfriend peek into the offices of a young lawyer who's on the list. She's never seen him before so she's naturally curious to check him out as she tells her boyfriend. How much more interesting it would have been to have the girl meet all her potential suitors, compare them to her rather mundane actor-boyfriend, and make a grown-up decision. That would have been a real journey worth filming.

This movie starts out a bit artsy, which I found off-putting, but it improved quickly. I found the pace of the movie slightly tedious, but this is necessary to show what Palestinian life is like (waiting hours at check-points to go anywhere is not unusual). Some parts of the movie were slightly confusing for a non-Palestinian audience to follow what was going on. The lead actress who plays Rana was very good. It is not a story about the Israeli occupation, it is a story about Rana, but it does show a lot of what it is like in Israeli occupied Palestine. If you don't mind that it isn't Hollywood, I would recommend this movie purely for the interesting setting.

I just saw this, and I gave it a 9.The filming and pace were extremely well done. The story isn't so much suspenseful as stressful, which is a reflection of what the characters are going through. You're unsure you'll be allowed in, you're stuck in line, you can't get in touch, you're being watched, and you have a wedding to attend, a life to live. Palestinians have their friends, and their hopes, and that's it, and this film conveys that very well.The acting is good, everyone is on the same level, the characters are good under the scrutiny of a camera which takes long stares. The story is not contrived like many may-not-happen wedding films, it continues to move along. There is some humor, but it's the kind of humor you see in everyday life, it's not a comedy.It's filmed on location Jerusalem and Ramallah, and we see all the elements of everyday life that come over to the US on the news: somber funerals, stones against assault rifles, houses being demolished, cops with itchy trigger fingers, endless lines at military checkpoints, a little poverty, lots of filth, but in a nicely done way, the film isn't very heavy handed about it, it shows it there and moves on, not focusing on the misery, and the atmosphere comes through the characters and their emotions. Rana is upset, even with her fiancee, and you see why someone can be so upset on what she hopes to be the happiest day of her life.

I will long remember the acting of Clara Khoury in the main role in this film. I do not know if she is a professional actress or not, but she could be. She acts beautifully with her eyes and facial expressions. Many of the greatest films in history especially by French and Italian filmmakers have used non-professional actors in their films. The film is especially valuable in showing the fact that normal everyday life can go on even under foreign occupation.I admit to bias in favor of the Palestinians in their quest for freedom from Israeli occupation, but I actually thought this film was deeply moving as pure drama. The visual sweep of the film, the music and the deeply moving poetic fragment at the end were almost overwhelming.I certainly hope that Kino Video or some such distributor of quality foreign films will pick this up for distribution, although I suspect certain influential political action committees might object.Highly Recommended.