Monday, April 15, 2013

When Time Becomes a Woman

On the windswept, ancient banks of the Dead Sea, a man named Zad (Zaid Baqaeen) and a mysterious woman (Najwan Baqaeen) meet for the first time. Zad is a revolutionary whose past exploits, in hindsight, seem selfish and unimaginative — and this realization racks his soul.

She, in turn, is disillusioned by the gulf between his reputation, which she had long admired, and the humble reality standing before her. So she beseeches him to reflect, and in doing so, time becomes a woman, and a woman becomes time, and she becomes nothing less than a mirror through which Zad can see his own consciousness.

When Time Becomes a Woman is an intentionally minimalist film that focuses on dialogue and substance as opposed to any production technique that might distract an audience from the spoken word. Yet there are many twists and unexpected revelations; to a sensitive ear, there is nothing static about this presentation. There is movement in the breezes that sweep in from the sea, carrying dialogue, and thought, with them. In this remarkable and poignant first feature film, Jordanian director Ahmad Alyaseer tackles heavy material, in an unconventional way, on a shoestring budget — and succeeds, brilliantly.

You can watch the trailer here: When Time Becomes a Woman Trailer