5 Broken Cameras (2012)

The power of film

Filmmaking has long been a formidable tool when it comes to portraying the horrors of war. Battlefields, both physical and political, receive an extraordinary transformation when captured through a lens, magnifying their horror and unleashing their emotion. Emad Bumat and Guy Davidi, the makers of 5 Broken Cameras, have created an unrelentingly powerful piece about a particular struggle in the West Bank, where the conflict between Palestine and Israel rages on.

Bumat is the man responsible for capturing the story, having been an inhabitant of a small village called Bil’in, in the West Bank, all his life, he was given a video camera on the day of his fourth son’s (Gibreel‘s) birthday, and chose to continue to record the development of the conflict in his village. This conflict involved the Palestinians becoming angered by Israeli settlement on their lands, and the erection of a wall on Palestinian land which would separate the two sides.

Throughout the film, we see Emad and other members of his village protesting the settlement, in the hope of regaining their lands, which they use mostly to farm. The Israeli army who defend the wall, become increasingly hostile to the protestors, and there are constant scuffles between the two sides, and the Palestinians are regularly shot at with tear gas and live ammunition.

Davidi provides a narration to the film, offering a sense of rising tension, and looming tragedy. His background as an Israeli also lends the film a deepened sense of discourse, making the message far more complex. The makers argue that people should watch the movie without any preconceptions, and allow the film to move you without demanding loyalties either way.

The difference between this political film and others like it, is the boy Gibreel. We see him born into the world, and his tumultuous childhood to aged four, as he learns about the world around him, in particular the battles going on between his village and the settlers. Seeing the conflict rage on around him encapsulates the terrifying destruction at work, and the absurdity of war.

5 Broken Cameras attests directly to the power of film. The title comes from Emad’s use of another camera when one breaks, mostly when they are shot by Israeli soldiers, and the five broken cameras are able to separate his story into digestible chapters. Furthermore, the cameras save Emad’s life - literally. Not only do they make soldiers think twice before acting aggressively towards him, but on several occasions the camera was struck with a bullet that would have definitely hit Emad had it not been in the way.

This is an immensely powerful and evocative documentary, one that offers no hesitation when it comes to representing the violence and atrocities occurring. 5 Broken Cameras also counteracts the horror with an extremely uplifting representation of humanity and love when it shows the children, or the community of Bil’in rallying together. A scene where a child gives an Israeli soldier an olive branch is extremely poignant.

Truly exceptional.