Ajami (film)
| Ajami | |
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Arabic-language Theatrical poster
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| Directed by |
Scandar Copti Yaron Shani |
| Produced by | Moshe Danon Thanassis Karathanos Talia Kleinhendler |
| Written by | Scandar Copti Yaron Shani |
| Starring | Fouad Habash Ibrahim Frege Scandar Copti Shahir Kabaha Eran Naim |
| Music by | Rabih Boukhari |
| Cinematography | Boaz Yehonatan Yaacov |
| Edited by | Scandar Copti Yaron Shani |
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Release date
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Running time
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120 minutes |
| Country | Israel |
| Language |
Arabic Hebrew |
| Budget | $1 million |
| Box office | $2.2 million |
Ajami (Arabic: عجمي; Hebrew: עג'מי) is a 2009 Israeli Arab drama film. Its plot is set in the Ajami neighborhood of Jaffa, Israel.
The film contains five story lines, each of which is presented in a non-chronological fashion. Some events are shown multiple times from varying perspectives. A young Israeli Arab boy, Nasri, who lives in the Ajami neighborhood of Jaffa, narrates the film.
In the first story, Nasri's neighbor—a teenage boy—is shot to death by a well-known Bedouin clan in a drive-by shooting while working on his car. Nasri explains that the intended target was his older brother Omar, who had previously sold the car to the neighbor. The botched hit was revenge for a loss of one of Bedouin clan members, who was shot and paralyzed by Nasri's uncle in a dispute. Nasri and his younger sister are sent to Jerusalem, while Omar, his mother, and grandfather stay behind. Fearing for his family's safety, Omar seeks protection and guidance from Abu Elias, an affluent restaurant owner, and well known and respected member of the Jaffa community. Abu Elias arranges for a three-day ceasefire, and hires a lawyer to represent Omar in tribal court. During this time, Nasri and his sister return home. At the conclusion of the court session, the judge declares that Omar must pay tens of thousands of dinars—the equivalent of tens of thousands of US dollars—so peace can be restored. Omar is given three weeks to make good on his payment. Omar and his friend Shaata attempt petty crime in order to come up with the finances, but are unsuccessful at bringing in enough money. Omar's mother attempts to persuade him to escape with the family, but Omar refuses to leave, believing that there is no place to run to.
The second story introduces a young teenaged boy named Malek who lives in the Palestinian territory of Nablus. Malek is illegally employed in Abu Elias's restaurant, and works out of desperation to make enough money for his ailing mother's bone marrow transplant surgery. Malek is friends with Omar, who has also become a recent employee at the restaurant. It is also revealed that Omar, a Muslim, is in love with Abu Elias's daughter Hadir, a Christian. Abu Elias, once discovering the secret couple later in the film by catching them in the surreptitious act of flirtation, does not approve of their relationship, and angrily fires Omar, warning him to stay away from his daughter.
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