Arna's Children

ARNA'S CHILDREN

The movie Arna's Children revolves around Arna, an elderly lady who led a small theatre group in West Bank. The theatre that she had established helped the children of the Jenin community to deal with the harsh realities of Israeli occupation. She had set up the institution at a time when Israeli authorities had shut down all educational institutions and the theatre group provided the children of Jenin with education and support. Arna's dedication and passion towards the restore the children was highly appreciated especially since she had aged a lot and was suffering from cancer. She was rightly awarded the Right Livelihood Award, an alternative for Nobel Proze. Unfortunately, a few years into her death, the theatre closed down. Here's where the movie gains pace. Arna's son, Jules returns to Jenin in 2001 to a changed Jenin. All the children from the theatre group had grown up now and had joined armed brigades in the fight against the Palestinian Intifada. Some of them had been killed and the others still persistently fought the Israeli Army. The theatre where they once used to enact plays was now ruins and used as a fort from where they could attack the Israeli army. Images of the same individuals as young kids expressing their desire to become actors were juxtaposed with the current scene showing them as armed fighters. This gave a very moving and powerful message about the deplorable condition of the Palestinians. It is a vicious cycle. The more atrocities that are inflicted on the Palestinians, the more militants would be born and the movie tries to say that the only way this can be solved is by giving Palestinians their freedom.