Iraqi Odyssey (2014)
Writer/Director: Samir (Snow White, Forget Baghdad: Jews and Arabs—The Iraqi Connection)
Genre: Documentary (162 minutes) English and Arabic with subtitles
“My earliest recollections are connected with my mother,” says Jamal, who was born in Basra 1941. He remembers the night sky and the river. He remembers her putting prayers into the river. He remembers the candles. Aunts, uncles and cousins all have different memories. Samir is a Swiss filmmaker who was born in Iraq in 1955. His mother was Swiss and his family moved to Switzerland after the 1968 revolution. He tells us about his family’s deep roots in Iraq. “No one in my family could have imagined we would be spread all over the world.” We will eventually meet family in London, Paris, New Zealand, America, Soviet Union, Germany, etc. Samir tells us he was inspired by their stories.
“We lived in poverty,” Samir tells us. “But everything was clean and well organized.” They enjoyed the fun fair and picnics. They even had a TV. Actually, Samir’s family lived a rather privileged life… Samir didn’t realized how other people lived at the time. In 1968, the slogan was, “Long live the Communist Party!” The family supported the revolution, but then “everything took a turn and our family was scattered across the globe.” Most did fairly well… they were teachers, lawyers, engineers, doctors, etc. But they never stop being homesick for Iraq. In Switzerland, Samir stopped speaking Arabic because he wanted to become a “real Swiss boy.” But Switzerland wouldn’t give citizenship to an Iraqi boy. Eventually… 2010… Samir had a chance to visit Bagdad after over 40 years. The family home was small and dingy. The graves were a mess with bullet holes everywhere. He became “curious to find out how my homeland descended into chaos.” To find out, he would have to dig deep and uncover secrets.
Samir’s large extended family had numerous connections to events and influential people. With the help of his relatives, Samir narrates a complex odyssey. He effectively uses a huge assortment of images, in combination with interviews to calmly and methodically peal away layer after layer of history and family events. It’s a beautifully told journey that has become the officially Swiss entry into the Academy Awards. At 2 hours and 45 minutes, it may be a bit long for those who don’t have a strong interest in the topic. But if you’re willing to devote the time, it’s quite absorbing. We see Iraq as it was when Sunni and Shia Muslims, Jews and Christians lived in harmony. It’s painful seeing how the family homeland has lost more than 500 years of progress and civilization. When the family came together at one point to discuss their feelings, they were very torn about whether Iraq has a future. They know it’s an odyssey with no end. “Today over 4 million Iraqi citizens live all over the world… having the same discussions,” Samir says. His family story is just one of them. “You can’t shape the future if you don’t know the past.”
3 popped kernels
A Swiss filmmaker from Iraq traces the journey of his scattered family and their connection to Iraqi history
Popcorn Profile
Audience: Grown-ups
Gender Style: Neutral
Distribution: Art House & Video
Mood: Sober
Tempo: In No Hurry
Visual Style: Unvarnished Realism
Nutshell: Iraqi history
Language: True to life
