Miral

For the Indian Tamil-language slasher film, seeMiral (2022 film).For the asset management company, seeMiral (company).

Miral
French film poster
Directed by	Julian Schnabel
Screenplay by	Rula Jebreal
Based on	Miral by Rula Jebreal
Produced by	Jon Kilik François-Xavier Decraene Sonia Raule Jérôme Seydoux
Starring	Hiam Abbass Freida Pinto Yasmine Al Masri Ruba Jebreal Alexander Siddig Omar Metwally Stella Schnabel Willem Dafoe Vanessa Redgrave Shredy Jabarin
Cinematography	Éric Gautier
Edited by	Juliette Welfling
Music by	Olivier Daviaud
Production companies	RotanaTV Rotana Studios Rotana Film Production Pathé The Weinstein Company ER Productions Canal+ CinéCinéma Eagle Pictures India Take One Productions
Distributed by	Rotana TV Rotana Studios (MENA) Pathé (France) Eagle Pictures (Italy) The Weinstein Company (United States)
Release date	15 September 2010(2010-09-15)(France)
Running time	112 minutes
Countries	France India Israel Italy Palestine United States
Languages	English Arabic Italian Hebrew
Box office	$900,647

Miralis a 2010biographicalpolitical filmdirected byJulian Schnabelabout the coming of age of a Palestinian girl named Miral who grows up in the wake of the1948 Arab–Israeli Warand finds herself drawn into the conflict. The screenplay was written byRula Jebreal,based on her novel of the same name. The film was released on 3 September at the2010 Venice Film Festivaland on 15 September 2010 in France.

Plot

The film begins with a chronicle ofHind Husseini's effort to establish anorphanageinJerusalemafter the1948 Arab–Israeli War,theDeir Yassin Massacre,and the establishment of the state ofIsrael.In Jerusalem in 1948, on her way to work, Hind Husseini (Hiam Abbass) comes across 55 orphaned children in the street. She takes them home to give them food and shelter. Within six months, the number of children grows to almost 2,000, and the Dar Al-Tifel Institute is born.

Miral (Freida Pinto) is sent to the Institute by her father in 1978, at the age of 5 following her mother's death. Brought up safely inside the Institute's walls, she is naïve to the troubles surrounding her. Then, at the age of 15, she is assigned to teach at a refugee camp where she is awakened to the reality of the Palestinian refugees. When she falls for Hani, a militant, she finds herself torn between theFirst Intifadaof her people and Mama Hind's belief that she has soaked up that education is the road to peace.

Cast

• Sama Abu Khdeiras Little Rania
• Hiam AbbassasHind al-Husseini
• Freida Pintoas Miral
• Yasmine Al Masrias Nadia
• Ruba Blal as Fatima
• Alexander Siddigas Jamal
• Omar Metwallyas Hani
• Willem Dafoeas Eddie
• Vanessa Redgraveas Bertha Spafford
• Stella Schnabelas Lisa
• Makram Khouryas Khatib
• Zidane Awad as Miras
• Doraid Liddawi as Sameer
• Shredy Jabarinas Ali
• Juliano Mer-Khamisas Sheikh Saabah

Production

The Palestinian girl is the authorRula Jebreal.Her novel on which the movie is based is a stronglyautobiographicalaccount of her youth inWest Bank.She's torn between the injustice she sees at the hands of theIsraeli armyduring theFirst Intifadaand a desire for peace.

Schnabel revealed that the project had relevance for his own family history, figuring that he was a pretty good person to tell the other side of the story, given his background, as an American Jew whose mother was president, in 1948, of the Brooklyn chapter ofHadassahthe Women's Zionist Organisation of America.

Release

The film was released on 3 September at the2010 Venice Film Festivaland on 15 September 2010 in France. The film was set for release on 3 December 2010 in the United Kingdom,and on 25 March 2011 in the United States.

Miralwas initially rated R by theMPAAfor "some violent content including a sexual assault." Later, however, it was reclassified to PG-13 for "thematic material, and some violent content including a sexual assault" after an appeal of the R rating by theWeinstein Company.

Reception

Critics

Miralreceived negative reviews from critics. Onreview aggregatorwebsiteRotten Tomatoes,the film holds an approval rating of 18%, based on 65 reviews, and an average rating of 4.5/10.OnMetacritic,the film has a weighted average score of 45 out of 100, based on 51 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews".

Kelly Vancewrote that "Pinto handles the central role with a certain dignity, but the real drama is in Miral’s rejection of violence in favor of Hind Husseini’s (Abbass) example of education and negotiation".

Kenneth Morefield opined that "Miralis an ambitious film, and it may be that Schnabel's reputation has led to unrealistic expectations about what any film can (or should attempt to) accomplish. While it falls short of greatness, it has many admirable qualities ".

Sheri Linden ofThe Los Angeles Timeswrites, "The lack of a compelling lead figure, combined with Schnabel's tentative approach to the material, casts the film's later stretches in the balmy glow ofsoap opera."Justin Chang ofVarietysimilarly adds, "Schnabel's signature blend of splintered storytelling and sobering humanism feels misapplied to this sweeping multigenerational saga of four Arab women living under Israeli occupation, the youngest of which, Miral, emerges a bland totem of hope rather than a compelling movie subject."

Deborah Young ofThe Hollywood Reporterdescribed the film as "a political film with a message of hope, on the obvious side".

Miralwas reviewed by Geoffrey Macnab ofThe Independentas "choppily edited" and "unevenly performed" but also "courageous" and "groundbreaking."

Public discussion with filmmakers

An open public panel discussion aboutMiraltook place on 30 March 2011 at the Center for Palestine Studies atColumbia Universitywith film directorJulian SchnabelandPalestinianjournalistRula Jebrealon whose autobiographical novel the film was based.Helga Tawil Souri,Professor of Media, Culture, & Communication atNYU,andHamid Dabashi,Professor of Iranian Studies & Comparative Literature at Columbia University, led and moderated the panel discussion. During the discussion with the moderators, Schnabel and Jebreal discussed the events that led to the film's premiere at theUN General Assembly.Schnabel described the film as sending a political message in his discussions with UN General Assembly President, Mr.Joseph Deiss.

The premiere at the UN was opposed by the Israeli government and theAmerican Jewish Committeeas it depictedIsraelin a "highly negative light." The Jewish-American directorJulian Schnabelurged AJC members to see the film, as he felt they had misunderstood its intent. "I love the State ofIsrael,"wrote Schnabel," I believe in it, and my film is about preserving it, not hurting it… Instead of saying 'no,’ I ask the AJC to say 'yes,’ see Miral and join the discussion. "HollywoodstarsSean Penn,Robert De Niro,Steve BuscemiandJosh Brolinattended the premiere.

See also

• Deir Yassin massacre
• Israeli Declaration of Independence
• 1948 Arab–Israeli War

External links

• MiralatIMDb
• MiralatAllMovie
• MiralatBox Office Mojo
• MiralatRotten Tomatoes
• Columnist Ray Hanania on the importance of the film