Wajib (film)

Wajib (Arabic: واجب Wājib, "Duty") is a 2017 Palestinian drama film directed as well as written by Annemarie Jacir. It was screened in the Contemporary World Cinema section at the 2017 Toronto International Film Festival.^[1] It was selected as the Palestinian entry for the Best Foreign Language Film at the 90th Academy Awards, but it was not nominated.^[2][3]

Wajib
Film poster
Directed by	Annemarie Jacir
Written by	Annemarie Jacir
Produced by	Ossama Bawardi
Starring	Mohammad Bakri, Saleh Bakri
Release date	5 August 2017 (2017-08-05) (Locarno)
Running time	96 minutes
Country	Palestine
Language	Palestinian Arabic

Wajib won 36 international awards including Best Film in Mar Del Plata, Dubai, Amiens, DC Film Festival, Kerala and the London BFI Festival.

Plot

In this road movie, a father and son travel amid wedding preparations in the lead-up to Christmas in Nazareth.

Cast

• Mohammad Bakri as Abu Shadi
• Saleh Bakri as Shadi
• Maria Zreik as Amal

Reception

Critical reception

On review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds an approval rating of 100%, based on 35 reviews with an average rating of 7.6/10.^[4]

Awards

• Muhr Awards for Best Fiction Feature Film and for Best Actor (for Mohammad Bakri and Saleh Bakri), Dubai International Film Festival 2017^[5]
• Golden Crow Pheasant for Best Film, International Film Festival of Kerala 2017^[6]
• Arab Critics Awards for Best Film, Best Screenplay and Best Actor (for Mohammad Bakri), Cannes Film Festival 2018^[7]
• Golden Astor for Best Film and Silver Astor for Best Actor (for Mohammad Bakri) Mar del Plata International Film Festival 2017^[8]

See also

• List of submissions to the 90th Academy Awards for Best Foreign Language Film
• List of Palestinian submissions for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film

References

1. Lang, Brett (15 August 2017). "Toronto Adds Films From Aaron Sorkin, Louis C.K., Brie Larson". Variety. Penske Business Media. Retrieved 16 August 2017.
2. Writman, Alex (30 August 2017). "Oscars: Palestine Selects 'Wajib' for Foreign-Language Category". The Hollywood Reporter. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved 30 August 2017.
3. "German TV Network ARD Says It Pulled Palestinian Comedy 'Wajib' Due To "Narrative Perspective" Amid Accusations Of Censorship". Deadline.
4. "Wajib (2017)". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango Media. Retrieved 14 December 2022.
5. Simon, Alissa (13 December 2017). "Palestinian Annemarie Jacir's 'Wajib' Wins Big at Dubai Festival". Variety. Penske Business Media. Retrieved 13 December 2017.
6. Staff Reporter (15 December 2017). "Wajib wins Suvarna Chakoram". The Hindu. Retrieved 24 January 2018.
7. Goodfellow, Melanie (13 May 2018). "Annemarie Jacir's 'Wajib' triumphs at Arab Critics Awards". Screen Daily. Screen International. Retrieved 16 July 2018.
8. Plata, Festival Internacional de Cine de Mar del. "¡Todos los ganadores! - Festival Internacional de Cine de Mar del Plata". www.mardelplatafilmfest.com (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 14 August 2018. Retrieved 15 October 2018.

External links

• Wajib at IMDb