A debut for photojournalist Marcel
Mettelsiefen and genuinely my favourite Channel4 documentary...ever. I'm not
convinced why, but the pacing and structure, the engaging contributors, the
setting of the story at the frontline in Aleppo, the constant jeopardy of gunfire and snipers and some wonderfully emotive original music from Andrew Phillips made it the most compelling factual
programme I've viewed in a long time.
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| casarotto.co.uk |
Mettelsiefen gained access to a family at
the forefront of the Free Syrian Army's (FSA) fight. We were faced with
the plight of 4 children, wise way beyond their years: 5yr old Sara, 8yr old
Farah, 13yr old Helen and 14yr old Mohammed. All children of the commander of the FSA battalion at the front, Abu Ali Al-Saliba, now missing and presumed dead by the hands of IS militants.
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| www.stern.de |
We also meet with a well-known face
among the revolution, 13yr old Aboude, who spends his days rallying support, singing and
encouraging others to victory with his pro-revolution posters. It's almost like some mocked up interview where
it's been scripted by a 30yr old, but actually is completely devised by the
brains of a 12yr old. It's astounding how much these children understand about their conflict, even more so, how aware they are of themselves. His mother even tells us how his parents tried to deter him from his work but how he cried for days and instead set to work making posters. Aboude is not blind to the dangers of his work either, he tells his mother that she should not be sad if he should die and sees his role as a duty. It's commendable, if not tragic that such a young boy should feel to hold the weight of the nation's hopes on his shoulders.
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| express.co.uk |
The three girls of Abu and Hala spend their days tidying up
houses that have been bombed by the Aasad regime where the youngest girl Sara,
finds sporadic refuge in the toys of the children that had lived there prior. But
older sister Helen is quick to remind her of her moral values 'it's wrong to take other
people's belongings' and returns them to their rightful place. It's moving to see such clarity of goodness and judgement amidst a
conflict that knows nothing of the kind.
14yr old Mohammed also shares philosophies way beyond the childish woes we hear so often at home, as he states, 'What ever happens to the men, to my father, will happen to us as well'. Helen shares 'we will live and die with our dad...why should we leave him'. These children hold within them the hope for a better world and the loyalty and resilience of the people behind the revolution.
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| miscethoughts.blogspot.com |
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| www.stern.de |
Similarly we see how they still try to have
a childhood, as Helen teaches her siblings as they cannot attend school, so that they have a hope in
their futures. She also asks Sara to tell her about her dreams... she is encouraged to
play and to dream, rather than to grow up too fast. “I just want my
siblings to be happy…to feel the spirit of childhood, the spirit of play,” she
says. Although we do see a
moment, a flicker of doubt in their hope, when Farah describes how one man lost his head when a bomb exploded as he lit it. As she nods to tell us she saw the man after he had died we can only imagine the feelings she must have experienced. The hope falters further when we hear a shell explosion nearby, 'that was close by' she says rising from her seat. We see an instant change in behaviour that
crushes our maternal empathy so much that it turns to dust. I cannot imagine what their mother must feel each day as her children play on a balcony targeted by snipers.
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| channel4.com |
It was wonderfully shot, focussing on the
children of the conflict gave a more honest account than I am used to. Adults
reason, they cover up, they have agendas, children simply have their desire to
be children and their very natural and inhibited responses to the questions
they are asked. We cannot tear our eyes away from their fight, from their fear, cannot help but honour their resilience and cannot help but feel as though we have lost something when the programme ends without hearing the rest of their story.
I cannot stress how great I thought this film was. A really
great achievement for Mettelsiefen and if this standard is anything to go by, I can't wait to see his next work.
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