The Green Prince is Nadav Schirman’s cinematic take on Mosab Hassan Yousef’s book, Son of Hamas. A combination of stylized reenactments, never-before-seen found footage, and compelling interviews help weave the heavy and intricate tale of Mosab, a son of one of the most prominent leaders of the early 2000s Palestinian Islamic Hamal movement - a "project" with military support designed to overthrow the Israeli occupation in Palestine - and Gonen Ben Yitzhak, the Israeli Shin Bet interrogator who brought Mosab in to act as a spy for the Israeli military.
Schirman succeeds in building a world of tension and suspense that sucks you into Mosab’s story and the war-torn, violent world of Israel and Palestine. The interviews are so strong; each word of accented English enraptures you. The editing is even better; fuzzy aspect ratio changes induce a haze of distant memories of a surreal reality. Every moment is engaging, and you never lose sight of the monumental stakes. The movie plays out like Hollywood's best spy thriller creation, but then grounds you, reminding you that it is actually someone's very real and extraordinary life. There is not much rise and fall, but that doesn't negatively affect much for the film is at a constant high fever pitch and doesn’t miss a beat.
The only thing that was missing for me: the story moves at a rapid pace, so there wasn't much time to understand Mosab's motivations or inner dialogue. I was left questioning how Mosab was able to abandon and turn against the very life and philosophy that he was surrounded by and steeped in his entire life so quickly and so completely. I feel that betraying one’s father, especially when you have a loving relationship, is not an easy thing to do. Of course, I understand why one would choose peace over terrorism and cruelty; I just do not fully understand Mosab’s why. However, the events that occurred and the explanations that are given did enough to prevent this from becoming a major issue.
The Green Prince culminates in an emotional end that reveals the story the entire time to simply be a story about friendship and purity of heart. It proves that amid all the hatred, violence, selfishness, stubbornness, and war of not only the Gaza Strip, but of the entire world, that good people and love still exist. This simple message interweaved with Mosab's story makes me cry. And this simple message is why this film is so effective and a must-see.
Grade: A
Schirman succeeds in building a world of tension and suspense that sucks you into Mosab’s story and the war-torn, violent world of Israel and Palestine. The interviews are so strong; each word of accented English enraptures you. The editing is even better; fuzzy aspect ratio changes induce a haze of distant memories of a surreal reality. Every moment is engaging, and you never lose sight of the monumental stakes. The movie plays out like Hollywood's best spy thriller creation, but then grounds you, reminding you that it is actually someone's very real and extraordinary life. There is not much rise and fall, but that doesn't negatively affect much for the film is at a constant high fever pitch and doesn’t miss a beat.
The only thing that was missing for me: the story moves at a rapid pace, so there wasn't much time to understand Mosab's motivations or inner dialogue. I was left questioning how Mosab was able to abandon and turn against the very life and philosophy that he was surrounded by and steeped in his entire life so quickly and so completely. I feel that betraying one’s father, especially when you have a loving relationship, is not an easy thing to do. Of course, I understand why one would choose peace over terrorism and cruelty; I just do not fully understand Mosab’s why. However, the events that occurred and the explanations that are given did enough to prevent this from becoming a major issue.
The Green Prince culminates in an emotional end that reveals the story the entire time to simply be a story about friendship and purity of heart. It proves that amid all the hatred, violence, selfishness, stubbornness, and war of not only the Gaza Strip, but of the entire world, that good people and love still exist. This simple message interweaved with Mosab's story makes me cry. And this simple message is why this film is so effective and a must-see.
Grade: A
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