Filmmaker Waad Al-Kateab bared her soul in the Oscar-nominated documentary For Sama, a devastating watch set over five years during the uprising in Aleppo, Syria. Now based in the UK, Al-Kateab takes a personal, passionate approach to following fellow refugees as they hope to join the IOC Refugee Olympic Team at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics. It’s a gripping, character-driven doc that pays tribute to incredible strength and perseverance amid many obstacles – including the Covid pandemic.
After appearing in an emotional prelude, Al-Kateab moves behind the camera to quiz her subjects gently, letting her voice be heard as they share their most vulnerable moments. We first meet five sportspeople from Iran, Syria, South Sudan and Cameroon, before they find out if they’ve got through to the team. We watch as they sit on zoom calls with the selection committee, their nerves on edge. One applicant doesn’t get through, but instead of dropping them - or not even including them, as many docs would do - this film follows their journey after the bitter disappointment. Meanwhile, four athletes train up while nervously awaiting more results: a positive Covid test could potentially ruin all their dreams in one fell swoop.
It’s a reminder that every single displaced person has a deeply moving story to tell
Each player is a fascinating character. Anjelina Nadai Lohalith is a runner who has fled South Sudan for Kenya, and desperately misses the family she left behind. Saeid Fazloula is an Iranian canoeist who made the difficult decision to flee to Germany after receiving death threats. Cyrille Tchatchet II is a psychiatric nurse, born in Cameroon. He discovered a passion for weightlifting and has found support from the sporting community in the UK. Wael Fawaz Al-Farraj is a young Syrian teenager who dreams of making it big in Taekwondo. Kimia Alizadeh has already competed in Taekwondo at the Olympics: she won a bronze medal for Iran in 2016, but decided to defect in early 2020, citing the Iranian oppression of women. Watching her journey is particularly interesting, not least when she has to fight an old friend.
It’s a gripping watch, regardless of whether or not you know the outcome. Watching these committed athletes is intensified by the knowledge of what they have been through to survive, let alone become world class Olympians. There is also a glimpse of fellow refugee Olympian Yusra Mardini, who was the subject of last year’s feature film The Swimmers. It’s a reminder that every single displaced person has a deeply moving story – and that it’s vitally important for filmmakers to be telling them.
In Curzon cinemas and on Curzon Home Cinema Dec 1