Terrorism is an extremely prevalent problem in the world today. Every month there is news of a bombing in some city, or a shooting in some neighborhood, and Western media has made Islam the face of terrorism. While Jihadists only make up a fraction of the proponents of terrorism, the media has caused “terrorism” to be synonymous with “Muslim.” Even understandable acts of rebellion, like the liberation movement of Palestine against Israel, are seen as Islamic radicalism because misguided individuals perpetrate acts of terrorism. The movie Paradise Now, by director Hany Abu-Assad, shows the ordeals of two friends, Khaled and Said, who enlist in a Palestinian resistance group to coordinate suicide attacks on Tel Aviv, Israel. Abu-Assad attempts
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When Khaled and Said first attempt to cross the Israel-Palestine border, Said expresses his doubts about the mission. The dialogue between the two friends suggests that Khaled believes the mission to be God’s plan for them. He insists that “In an hour we will be heroes. We will be with Allah in paradise.” Khaled bolsters Said’s motivation to proceed with the suicide mission by claiming that they are actualizing God’s will. However, his words are very reminiscent of Islamic extremists who radicalize the “jihad” to justify terrorizing and killing non-Muslims in the name of God. With his choice of dialogue, Hany Abu-Assad evokes a negative impression of Khaled, likening Khaled to Jihadist extremists. Similarly, in a previous scene, Abu-Assad associates Khaled with Jihadists by portraying him standing in front of a camera with a gun in hand, saying his farewell and glorifying his cause. Khaled reads off a script, saying, “In times like these, Allah recognizes the believers and chooses the martyrs. … In response to the occupation, the injustice and the crimes, and in order to support the resistance, I have decided to sacrifice myself. The only thing we can do is to fight. … as a martyr, I do not fear death. Only this way would I come out victorious. … I want to die as a martyr.” Khaled’s words and the setting of the scene create parallels between Khaled and real-life “martyrs,” whose farewell videos are released soon after their suicide attacks. Hany Abu-Assad’s intention to show movie watchers that Palestinian resistance is not based on religious fanaticism is undermined by his portrayal of Khaled as a Jihadist. He fails to show that Palestinians strive for liberation from oppression and not for religious retribution. As with
When Khaled and Said first attempt to cross the Israel-Palestine border, Said expresses his doubts about the mission. The dialogue between the two friends suggests that Khaled believes the mission to be God’s plan for them. He insists that “In an hour we will be heroes. We will be with Allah in paradise.” Khaled bolsters Said’s motivation to proceed with the suicide mission by claiming that they are actualizing God’s will. However, his words are very reminiscent of Islamic extremists who radicalize the “jihad” to justify terrorizing and killing non-Muslims in the name of God. With his choice of dialogue, Hany Abu-Assad evokes a negative impression of Khaled, likening Khaled to Jihadist extremists. Similarly, in a previous scene, Abu-Assad associates Khaled with Jihadists by portraying him standing in front of a camera with a gun in hand, saying his farewell and glorifying his cause. Khaled reads off a script, saying, “In times like these, Allah recognizes the believers and chooses the martyrs. … In response to the occupation, the injustice and the crimes, and in order to support the resistance, I have decided to sacrifice myself. The only thing we can do is to fight. … as a martyr, I do not fear death. Only this way would I come out victorious. … I want to die as a martyr.” Khaled’s words and the setting of the scene create parallels between Khaled and real-life “martyrs,” whose farewell videos are released soon after their suicide attacks. Hany Abu-Assad’s intention to show movie watchers that Palestinian resistance is not based on religious fanaticism is undermined by his portrayal of Khaled as a Jihadist. He fails to show that Palestinians strive for liberation from oppression and not for religious retribution. As with