Man Without a Cellphone

A humorous, sharp take on the social milieu of a Palestinian village inside Israel. Jawdat, a restless young concrete worker, just wants to have fun with his friends, talk on his cell phone and find love - a near impossible task in a place where politics and traditional values dominate. Adding to Jawdat's problems is his curmudgeonly father, Salem, who establishes the film's irreverent tone with his opening pronouncement of his people's dilemma: "Co-existence, my ass!" Dragging Jawdat and the entire village into his outrageous battle against an Israeli cell phone tower that he fears is poisoning them with radiation, the father's hysterical behavior stands in stark contrast to his son's cool attitude to win the hearts of Muslim, Christian and even Jewish girls while wrestling with college entrance exams. The social injustice faced by Israel's minority class only appears to take second place to a more jovial narrative here. That's due to smooth, sure-handed direction by Zoabi, who seems to realize good-natured humor often produces a far stronger impact than bludgeoning audiences with polemics.


Cast

Jawdat - Razi Shawahdeh

Salem - Bassem  Loulou

Mohammad - Loai Noufi

Rana - Naela Zarqawi

Fadwa - Sanaa Shawahdeh

Suha – Maysa abed elhadi

Sami - Ayman Nahhas

Abu Khaled - Amer Hlehel

Nader - Marwan Okal

Hassan - Tareq Qubti


Crew

Directed by - Sameh Zoabi

Produced by - Amir Harel, Ayelet Kait, Marie Gutmann

Co-produced by - Jacques-Henri Bronckart

Written by - Sameh Zoabi & David Rice

Director of Photography - Hichame Alaouie

Editor - Simon Jacquet

Original Music - Krishna Levy

ِArt Director - Nael Kanj

Costumes Designer - Hamada Attalah

Casting - Juna Suleiman

Details

Comedy, 90 min

35 mm

Languages Arabic, Hebrew

Subtitles English, French

Lama Films, Meroe Films, Versus Productions, The Rabinovich Foundation for the Arts – Cinema Project, Gesher Multicultural Fund, Fonds Sud, GAN Foundation, Memento  

World Sales: Memento Films - http://www.memento-films.com/

Festivals & Awards

Doha-Tribeca Film Festival 2010 – Official Selection

New Films New Directors 2011 – Official Selection

Winner of the Golden Antigone at Montpellier film festival, France

Winner of The Audience Award at Mons International Film Festival, Belgium



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Tanathur