Last night, three Jordanian short films were presented at the Balad Theater. Butterfly by Mohammad Hushki is a tale of a testosterone-ridden male and this two friends, who’s out to take his revenge on a cabdriver who molested his girlfriend. Fragile by Ahmad Amin brings together a day in the lives of five different people, […]

Nearly 45 years after his creation, Iron Man has come to the silver screen. I went to the early screening at Grand Cinema last night in eager anticipation for the first blockbuster movie of the season and thankfully, I wasn’t disappointed. The story begins as all good first superhero movies do, with the origins. Tony […]

Last night I had the fortune of getting to watch Mahmoud Massad’s award-winning documentary, “Recycle”. To say that it was a full house would be the understatement of the year. I watched the film from the floor of an aisle, while others hovered around the door, standing. I think the oxygen in the theater depleted […]

It may be hard to believe but March is almost over and the summer blockbusters are only a few weeks away. There are too many movies coming out, including Iron Man, Speed Racer, and Adam Sandler’s Don’t Mess With the Zohan, but here’s a selected list of the ones I’m personally looking forward to.

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Once in awhile a movie comes along that can be truly aspiring. In the pool of big budget Hollywood musicals that have come out in the past few years, whether its Chicago or Dreamgirls or even the better odds of last year’s Todd Sweeney and August Rush, it’s almost difficult to imagine a musical without […]

At first glance, the film about a shy, introvert who makes believe a sex doll is his girlfriend, has the makings of a goofy, romantic comedy. Lars And The Real Girl, is actually anything but that. With a pretty bold performance by Ryan Gosling, the story is really about true love, loneliness, and family. Described […]

Author’s Note: Last night Amin Matalqa’s Captain Abu Raed premiered for the first time in Jordan. I’ve reviewed many, many movies on the Black Iris, but this was by far one of the greatest films I’ve ever had the pleasure of experiencing. There will continue to be a great deal of buzz and reviews surrounding […]

Captain abu raed won world cinema audience award. recycle won cinematography. woohoo.
26/01/2008
07:04PM
UPDATE:
Audience Award: World Cinema Dramatic
CAPTAIN ABU RAED
Directed by Amin Matalqa
Excellence in Cinematography Award: World Cinema Documentary
RECYCLE
Al Massad
[Sundance]
MABROOOOK!!

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Probably one of the most overlooked films of last year, The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford, is a spectacular and classic western. The story is all in the descriptive title. Jesse James, the infamous and legendary American outlaw of the late 19th century, has been portrayed in over a dozen films […]

There Will Be Blood | “When ambition meets faith”. Based on the book Oil!, the movie tells the story of an oil prospector, Daniel Plainview, at the turn of the 20th century, who becomes a self-made man in the oil business. His fate leads him to California where he is told of a ranch that […]

Every year, there’s that one movie that is so low-key and independent from the glossy Hollywood spirit, that it sneaks on to everyone’s top 10 list. For 2007, and for me, Juno is that movie. It tells the story of a pregnant teenager who decides she wants to give her baby away to a picked […]

A few more reviews of movies you can find in the balad with excellent quality and are actually worth watching.
Charlie Wilson’s War | Charlie Wilson’s War | Aaron Sorkin of West Wing and A Few Good Men fame, pens this witty and sharp script, with Tom Hanks playing the role of Charlie Wilson. A Texan […]

The Kite Runner | “There is a way to be good again.” For the first time, in a long time, I can safely say that the book was in fact, better than the movie. This is not to say the movie was terrible; it was actually pretty good. However, the fault lies in the storytelling. […]

A bowl full of awesomeness.

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Since this is an odd holiday season, I thought I’d put together a bunch of reviews for movies I’ve seen lately, to help anyone wanting to pick something good to watch. The following can be found at Hammoudeh’s in the balad (or abdoun), with excellent quality. Luckily, they are all good movies, hence the high […]

Natalia Antonova has the first review of the Jordanian feature film, Captain Abu Raed over at Arab Comment. Definitely worth checking out.
Nadim Sawalha, aka Captain Abu Raed, picked up the Best Actor award at the Dubai Film Festival. [ht: bakkouz & arabianmonkey]

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