It’s difficult to recommend a film as devastating as For Sama, but the horrors it presents are real and ongoing. I am certainly no geopolitical expert, but it’s clear to me that the murder of Syrian demonstrators – including children – is the textbook definition of a fundamental crime against humanity. Throughout the now years-long Syrian Civil War, journalist Waad Al-Kateab kept her camera rolling, capturing some of the most heart-wrenching footage I have ever seen. What sets her film apart from other documentaries about war-torn regions, though, is that misery and destruction are only part of the story. For Sama is also filled to the brim with community, love, and an inspiring amount of optimism.
The Al-Kateab family, and many like them struggling for survival in the ravaged streets of Aleppo, Syria, are constantly faced with impossible choices. They could flee to relative safety, but that would mean abandoning the cause of freedom, not to mention those left behind. Or, they could stay, but to do so puts their newborn daughter, Sama, in jeopardy. Their sense of duty gets the best of them – Waad is a journalist, whose footage helps inform the world of the surrounding slaughter, while her husband Hamza is one of only a few remaining doctors – and they opt to stay to help the many innocent victims of cluster bombs and Russian-backed airstrikes. The carnage is unbelievable, and overwhelmingly civilian.
Waad Al-Kateab narrates the film as a kind of explanation or apology for young Sama to hear when she’s older. At times she nearly pleads with her daughter to understand why they stayed behind, hoping that Sama will be proud of her parents for what they tried to do. Al-Kateab’s words and voice take a strong detached tone, emphasizing her desensitization to the war around her and her resolve to do whatever it takes to help her friends and neighbors survive the conflict. Her calculated and callous demeanor is often betrayed by her utter humanity and humor. Everyone involved shows an amazing and sometimes baffling amount of spirit in the face of what would drive most mad.
For Sama is a very difficult film to watch. I don’t pretend to have answers to the problems it exposes, and frankly, neither does Al-Kateab, but what’s clear is that something must give and the killing needs to stop. It needs to stop now. I can only hope this film affects those who see it as much as it did me, and that its message isn’t lost on those in a position to do something about what’s happening in Aleppo and in other regions like it around the world. I want nothing more than for this immensely moving film to fulfill its purpose.
James is a writer, skateboarder, record collector, wrestling nerd, and tabletop gamer living with his family in Asheville, North Carolina. He is a member of the Southeastern Film Critics Association, the North Carolina Film Critics Association, and contributes to The Daily Orca, Razorcake Magazine, Mountain Xpress, and Asheville Movies.