"Limbo" -- Movie Review

 

This week, Lincoln Center held an advance screening of the new drama “Limbo” from Focus Features. 

Synopsis

When a Syrian refugee seeks asylum abroad, will he be able to wait it out while separated from his family?

Story

Omar is a young Syrian man who suddenly finds himself isolated on a Scottish island; he is there as a refugee seeking political asylum from the government.  His reason for leaving was due to the long-standing civil war in his native country; he has escaped to seek a better, safer life in a new and unfamiliar land.  While his parents also escaped, too, they wound up going to Istanbul, Turkey.  Nabil, Omar’s older brother, chose to remain in Syria to fight in the civil war.  As a musician, Omar brought with him his most prized possession:  an oud (a mandolin-like instrument) handed down to him by his grandfather. 

Periodically, Omar lugs his oud on a long trek to a public telephone booth where he can call his parents in Istanbul.  Things are not going all that well for them; they are running low on funds and are finding it difficult to pay the rent on their flat.  By contrast, the government is providing housing and a modest stipend to Omar -- but the truth of the matter is that neither he nor his parents are living particularly well.  His parents hope that someday they will be able to return to Syria, but right now, things don’t look terribly promising as the war continues to escalate on a daily basis. 

While in his temporary housing, Omar is befriended by Farhad; he is not only Omar’s roommate but a fellow refugee from Afghanistan.  When Farhad learns that Omar is a musician, he offers to serve as his agent -- this despite the fact that he hasn’t heard Omar play his oud due to an injury that has resulted in him wearing a plastic cast on his arm.  At times, however, they both tend to get on each other’s nerves but maintain their friendship because neither one has any better options.  In spite of the fact that both men have applied for asylum at approximately the same time, Farhad learns that his request for asylum has been approved.  What will this do to their relationship?  Will Omar get discouraged to the point where he will give up on his goal to be awarded his own asylum? 

Review

“Limbo” is a film that might best be described as quirky -- although it is categorized as a drama, it’s sprinkled with bits of somewhat absurdist comedy.  While these humorous moments serve as a welcome relief from the otherwise dolorous tone of the movie, these brief little outbursts of comedy almost come as something of a shock to the system at some points.  Whether it feels appropriate within the context of the story may depend on your tastes.  Don’t be confused -- it’s definitely not what could be called a comedy-drama; it’s a drama with occasional (sometimes unexpected) moments of comedy.  

Where “Limbo” succeeds is providing a realistic insight into what the life of a refugee is like.  This is seen in the pain that Omar feels by not only leaving his homeland -- which he remembers as being a beautiful country -- but also leaving his family behind.  He remains very much connected to them, despite the numerous conflicts that are exposed throughout the film.  Carrying his oud around everywhere he goes is a good visual symbol of that -- it is almost like an umbilical cord between him and his family.      

Following the screening, there was an interview with writer/director Ben Sharrock and stars Amir El-Masry (Omar) and Vikash Bhai (Farhad).  Sharrock said that over a decade ago, he lived in Damascus, shortly before the Syrian Civil War erupted.  Later, he got to know some refugees who were frequently dehumanized.  Sharrock decided to do the film in order to humanize them, partly by using humor.  El-Masry mentioned that he had to learn how to play the oud for this role and a music instructor was brought in specifically to teach him.  Bhai’s greatest challenge was the weather in Scotland in how much it varied not only from day-to-day but also within a given day.