Ajami is an area of Tel Aviv in Israel where Arabs, Palestinians, Jews and Christians live together in a tense atmosphere. Omar, an Israeli Arab, struggles to save his family from a gang of extortionists. He also courts a beautiful Christian girl: Hadir. Malek, an illegal Palestinian worker, tries to collect enough money to pay for his mother's operation. Dando, an Israeli cop, does his utmost to find his missing brother who may have been killed by Palestinians.
Fouad Habash
Nasri
Nisrine Rihan
Ilham
Elias Saba
Shata
Youssef Sahwani
Abu-Lias
Abu George Shibli
Sido
Ibrahim Frege
Malek
Scandar Copti
Binj
Shahir Kabaha
Omar
Hilal Kabob
Anan
Ranin Karim
Hadir
Eran Naim
Dando Ben David
Sigal Harel
Dando's sister
Tamar Yerushalmi
Dando's mother
Moshe Yerushalmi
Dando's father
Director, Writer
Scandar Copti
Director, Writer
Yaron Shani
July 6, 2013
7
A fantastically well written, well acted, well directed and well shot film. You barely notice its 2 hr length, as every minute is rich in drama and character. It's not an epic film by any stretch, but it's a significant one - bringing forth an engaging, touching, and at times poetic, story of a part of the World where life has complexities we understand little of. It may not quite match fellow notable Foreign Language Oscar nominees, City Of God, or A Prophet; but it comes very close and has many similarities.