INCENDIES – The Review

Considering the constant news coverage of conflicts in the Middle East it’s no wonder that several months after the release of MIRAL we’re seeing another family drama set in that region- INCENDIES directed by Denis Villeneuve based on the play by Wajdi Mouawad. Like the earlier film , this centers on a woman caught up in these clashes , but this time her story is part of a mystery that is slowly revealed.

After opening scenes of young men having their heads sheared, the action shifts to modern day Quebec. In the office of a notary, Jean Lebel, he meets with the twins of his late assistant, Nawal Marwan- Jeanne and Simon- to read her last will. Seems before her estate can be released to them, she must deliver a sealed envelope to their father, and he must do the same with their brother. This comes as a shock to the twins as their mother had never spoken of the existence of either. Simon wishes to ignore this request as he believed that his mother had lost he mind. Jeanne, a mathematician, is determined to follow her wishes and after finding some photos and papers in their mother’s home, travels to the Middle East in search of her father. The film flashes back to teenage Nawal attempting to run away with her boyfriend. They are stopped by her brothers who shoot the “refugee”. Before they can execute her, their grandmother arrives. Nawal is pregnant. As soon as she gives birth, the grandmother whisks the baby away to an orphanage. Soon, Nawal is sent away. With each part of her story, Jeanne travels the same steps as she sometimes encounters hostility from people who knewof her mother. Finally someone recognizes the background of the only photo Jeanne has of her young mother-she is at a woman’s prison. We learn that young Nawal is part of the region’s unrest. She witnesses a bus massacre, is taken in and trained as an assassin by the rebels, and after her mission she is jailed. There, behind bars, she becomes known as “the woman who sings” in defiance of the cruel, torturing guards. As Jeanne learns more she finally convinces brother Simon to join her along with Jean. Can the three of them navigate through the different political factions and deliver the envelopes?

Villeneuve is able to navigate this complex film confidently, so we can follow the storiesof Nawal’s life and Jeanne’s search. The shift from the windy, arid sands to chilly city streets can be abrupt at times. Like MIRAL this film uses bright big red titles to indicate chapter headings with city and character names. The acting is very good by all the principals especially Jean and the twins. Nawal’s character is the more complex as she hides her past from her grown children. I won’t spoil the big reveal of the center mystery, but I was very disappointed with the revelation. I found it so illogical that it almost negated the interest that I had in earlier scenes. The film is well done while dealing with a depressing subject ripped from the news. If only the solution to this mystery weren’t so frustrating. INCENDIES is an engaging, if marred, journey into a woman’s life in that turbulent land.

Overall Rating: Three Out of Five Stars