A startling tale centered around the illusion of choice, the importance of individuality, and the necessity of personal sacrifice, Elite Zexer's Sand Storm details the struggles of two generations of woman in Layla and her mother, Jalila, who live in a Bedouin village in Southern Israel. Jalila is stuck in an awkward situation, hosting a celebration centered around her husband's marriage to a second, much younger wife. While she attempts to conceal her animosity surrounding this insult, her daughter Layla finds herself falling in love with a fellow student, Anuar, a secret, strictly forbidden romance. The juxtaposition of mother and daughter in Sand Storm is the film's heart and soul, detailing how the mother herself has been beaten down by the harshness of the world in which she inhabits, unable to express the realities of their existence with her much more idealistic daughter, who firmly believes she can marry who she wants if she simply pleads her case. Elite Zexer's Sand Storm is an attack on the traditional culture itself, never placing all of the blame on masculinity for this restrictive, oppressive lifestyle, opting instead to focus on how these traditions have long restricted the individual rights of those who live there. The freedom of choice is a major component of Sand Storm, detailing how not only Jalila & Layla lack any semblance of free will, but how their husband/father, Suliman, himself is merely a pawn to these traditions as well. Many films detailing with the struggle of female rights routinely, and rightfully so at times, demonize masculinity and/or the father figures, but Sand Storm takes on a much more subtle, detailed approach, presenting a man in Suliman who seems to care deeply about his daughter and wife's well-being. While far from the centerpiece of the story, Suliman is a character who isn't simply their to represent the opposition, as Sand Storm presents a fully-developed portrait of a character who himself shows glimmers of personal struggle. Much like his wife and daughter, Suliman is a character who lacks choice in his own life, not free to make his own decisions when it comes to his family's well-being, stuck dealing with ancient traditions which find the tribal society itself declare what is best for the collective. The father is not completely free of criticism, but the opening scene of the film, in which he shares an intimate moment with his daughter, letting her drive home from the village as they discuss her studies is quite revealing. In this intimacy, Suliman treats his daughter like an equal, being a progressive individual in a culture that is so restrictive about a woman's right to go to school or drive. Layla's love for a man that isn't chosen by the elders puts her father in an awkward situation, showcasing how he himself is a slave to tradition, having to do things the way it's decreed to him by this culture. Suliman's routinely is a character who laments that he has "no choice" in these matters, yet through Layla's strong-will and rejection of these restrictive conditions he begins to see the true horror of this culture's oppressive nature, seeing in his daughter a woman who simply wants the freedom to do as she wants. As the story unfolds, Lalya ultimately fails when it comes to achieving her individual freedom, committing the ultimate sacrifice by agreeing to marry an individual she doesn't love for the sake of her family. Elite Zexer's Sand Storm is a tragic film that demonizes a culture which rejects individual freedom and a woman's right to choose, being a humbling portrait of two woman who are forced to live in regime that forcefully dictates their entire life.
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June 2023
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