Miral

Synopsis

Jerusalem, 1948: Palestinian socialite Hind Husseini turns her family home into a children's school and orphanage, believing that education is the key to ending the Arab-Israeli conflict. But in the 1980s, with hostilities continuing, one of her pupils - the titular teen Miral - starts questioning this intellectual approach, after becoming politicised whilst teaching at a refugee camp. Angered by the injustices she witnesses and having fallen for a handsome and fervent activist, Miral faces a huge dilemma as she decides whether to pick violent rebellion over Husseini's peaceful methods. Handsomely shot, and with well-chosen newsreel footage contextualising the story, this heart-felt drama gives a poignant, human face to the complexities of Middle Eastern politics.