For Gaza Mon Amour, the twin directors Arab and Tarzan Nasser explain that “in this territory, the simplest things always turn out to be complicated.” Just like the love the film’s hero, a fisherman in his sixties, has developed for a seamstress to whom he barely dares to declare his feelings.
Make no mistake, Gaza Mon Amour is indeed a political film, unafraid to criticize Hamas, but in its own way—poetic, naive, and romantic. The sudden appearance of an Apollo statue, in an “advantageous” position, serves as a comedic and symbolic link for the filmmaker brothers, who delight in the transgressive to denounce the prevailing morality, which, moreover, does not apply to financial matters.
Perfectly balanced between comedic moments and serious (even sentimental, with touching candor) passages, Gaza Mon Amour is flawlessly performed by the Israeli Arab actor Salim Daw, utterly irresistible (even in the presence of the disconcerting Apollo), whose temperament perfectly aligns with the sobriety and modesty of the great Hiam Abbass.
The final scene, magnificent, is in harmony with a feature film that is ultimately optimistic and, despite the Gazan context, has all the elements of a feel-good movie.
