Original way of story telling. The story compellingly shows how women are recruited by ISIS, and how risky it is to participate, even if only for research purposes
Saw this at the Movies That Matter film festival 2019 in The Hague. It was much better that I had expected after having read the announcement. We follow a risky strategy to obtain more insight how ISIS recruitment works for women. (Side note: Previously I saw various movies about recruitment of men, running along very different lines. Logical, as men are targetted to become a warrior and not the wife of a warrior. So, how the men are approached and recruited is completely different.)The story telling is original, even while having a clear parallel with Unfriended (2015) by Levan Gabriadze. Nearly everything relevant happens on screen, alternating between Facebook, Skype or Texting/Messaging, whatever the situation demands. Similar to Unfriended, this movie is impossible to describe to people who did not see it with their own eyes, experiencing the very proof it is indeed possible to create a compelling story this way. I've seen both movies, and I can vouch that it really works. One reviewer wrote about Unfriended: (quote) It's a premise that seems ridiculous until you start to realize it might actually be brilliant, or at least charmingly clever (end quote). I wholeheartedly agree with that observation.
The story itself is told in time jumps spanning some 20 days. The timeframe we are in remains clear throughout, as we see the day at hand selected on screen. Obviously, everything we see is in the past tense. It has been continuously recorded and is thus accessible on a day to day basis. There are no time jumps backwards. The developments are shown in chronological order.
In parallel, we see main protagonist Amy leading a "normal" life too, as the female part of a couple looking for a new house. Her "other" life plays a role on the backseat, however. What we get from it implicitly is that their relation is not 100% harmonious. Does it suggest she is more inclined to get bonded with the ISIS commander, or is that just my interpretation between the lines and not intentional?? Or is it merely her research drive as an investigative journalist that carries the story forward??
Switching on screen between the two lives is sometimes confusing and clobbering the story logic, yet necessary to maintain proper context. The tension rises near the end, when Amy is about to travel to Turkey, with a pivotal moment while having a stopover in Amsterdam. In Turkey she expects to finally meet the ISIS commander she had continuous contact with, the same person who made various promises about her future life as his wife. He, for example, showed her around in a big house (a room for baby 1 and one for baby 2, and of course the master bedroom), also promising ample money to spend. In short: a life as a princess (literal quote).
During aforementioned stopover in Amsterdam she learns that her future husband does not meet her personally in Turkey. When she clearly states that he is breaking his promise as she was looking forward to meeting him personally, suddenly his tone of his voice changes considerably, becoming more imperative. There is no trace anymore of the former sweet "love bird" tone of voice. In the end, we have a better view on what this "marriage" entails. Amy knows it now too, just in time while still in Amsterdam.
The consequences for her future life are devastating for reasons shown in the final scene and in the text boards that appear before the credits. (*** spoiler ahead ***) Her false Facebook profile does not protect her as much as she had hoped. The ISIS commander has obtained ample location information where she lives, not by hacking Facebook but by investigating images that were visible via windows behind her, like the train line that runs behind her house, and some defining pieces of the city skyline. A fatwa is issued that tasks every true Muslim to find her and kill her in the nastiest way possible.
score 8/10
JvH48 27 April 2019
Reprint: https://www.imdb.com/review/rw4808200/35409
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