Alam

Play trailer

1:58

Alam

2022

1h 49m

Drama

Play Trailer

Watchlist

Watchlist

Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

100%

Tomatometer

13 Reviews

Popcornmeter

Fewer than 50 Ratings

Despite being part of a young generation of Palestinian Arabs whose families chose to stay and challenge the Israeli state after Al-Nakba, 17-year-old Tamer and his friends are just like any other group of teenage boys. They clumsily search for drugs, flirt with girls, play video games, and slack off at school. However, when a beautiful new student named Maysaa' joins their class Tamer immediately falls for her and, by association, is drawn into her political activism. Together they join fellow classmate, Safwat, in an operation to covertly raise the Palestinian flag and peacefully disrupt the local celebrations planned for Israel's Independence Day -- otherwise known to Palestinians as a day of mourning and memorialization for their displacement 70 years prior. Unsure of his own political convictions, Tamer must quickly determine what matters to him and what price he is willing to pay for freedom. A skillful examination of the fraught political awakening young Palestinians are forced to undergo, this TIFF world premiere "perfectly captures teenage fearlessness and bravado along with a certain cluelessness about how the real-world works" (Variety). An striking debut feature film from Firas Khoury, ALAM marries conversations around nationalism and iconography with the universal themes of growing up.

Watch on Fandango

Stream Now

Tim Cogshell

FilmWeek (LAist)

05/10/2024

I thought it was very strong, and man these kids can act.

Go to Full Review

Namrata Joshi

The New Indian Express

06/08/2023

It’s about the loss of innocence and essential politicisation of the young through acts of resistance with a flag as a tool and ally.

Go to Full Review

Adam Mullins-Khatib

Chicago Reader

05/17/2023

Khoury’s Alam is an affecting and effective film firmly fixated on contradictions and how we navigate them to create a sense of self.

Go to Full Review

Joanne Laurier

World Socialist Web Site

01/13/2025

Alam is a sincere and honest film. Its thoughtful presentation of its central character’s dilemma—the desire to live a normal life under conditions of perpetual repression and violence ...—has a resonance beyond the borders of the Middle East.

Go to Full Review

Joshua Polanski

Boston Hassle

07/05/2024

I’m not sure how many better endings I will see this year.

Go to Full Review

Hanna Flint

The New Arab

05/13/2024

Khoury carefully portrays the gutsy and, at times, naive drive of a youth awakened by the politics of identity, nationalism and systemic oppression.

Go to Full Review

Read all reviews

Nad N

@RT98957737 01/17/2025

ALAM (The Flag) علم This film… so good, so crushing. 😮‍💨 The acting is superb. It pulls you in and makes you feel like you’re right there with them. A powerful story of people, places, and the politics that shape them.

See more

Read all reviews

Read More

Read Less

WRITE A REVIEW

EDIT REVIEW

POST RATING

Firas Khoury

Director

Mohammad Karaki

Shekel

Mohammad Bakri

Tamer

Muhammad Abed Elrahman

Safwat

Ahmad Zaghmouri

Actor

Saleh Bakri

Uncle Naji

Shayda

97%

57%

Shayda

Watchlist

TRAILER

for Shayda

Costa Brava, Lebanon

89%

88%

Costa Brava, Lebanon

Watchlist

TRAILER

for Costa Brava, Lebanon

Amerikatsi

88%

100%

Amerikatsi

Watchlist

TRAILER

for Amerikatsi

Discover more movies and TV shows.

View More

Alam: Trailer 1

1:58

Now Playing

View more videos

View more photos

Synopsis

Despite being part of a young generation of Palestinian Arabs whose families chose to stay and challenge the Israeli state after Al-Nakba, 17-year-old Tamer and his friends are just like any other group of teenage boys. They clumsily search for drugs, flirt with girls, play video games, and slack off at school. However, when a beautiful new student named Maysaa' joins their class Tamer immediately falls for her and, by association, is drawn into her political activism. Together they join fellow classmate, Safwat, in an operation to covertly raise the Palestinian flag and peacefully disrupt the local celebrations planned for Israel's Independence Day -- otherwise known to Palestinians as a day of mourning and memorialization for their displacement 70 years prior. Unsure of his own political convictions, Tamer must quickly determine what matters to him and what price he is willing to pay for freedom. A skillful examination of the fraught political awakening young Palestinians are forced to undergo, this TIFF world premiere "perfectly captures teenage fearlessness and bravado along with a certain cluelessness about how the real-world works" (Variety). An striking debut feature film from Firas Khoury, ALAM marries conversations around nationalism and iconography with the universal themes of growing up.

Director: Firas Khoury
Producer: Naomie Lagadec, Marie-Pierre Macia, Claire Gadea, Ossama Bawardi, Melik Kochbati
Screenwriter: Firas Khoury, Firas Khoury
Distributor: Film Movement
Production Co: MPM Film
Genre: Drama
Original Language: Hebrew
Release Date (Streaming): Apr 26, 2024
Runtime: 1h 49m

Join The Newsletter

Join The Newsletter

Cookie Settings