Paradise Now (DVD)

Paradise Now (2005). In Arabic, with subtitles. Two best friends, Palestinians, are recruited to be "martyrs" by becoming suicide bombers. What they propose to do is wrong, but this movie gives them human dimensions and makes us sympathize with them as people. Whether that's a good thing or not depends on your point of view. Whether this is a good film or not is a different question entirely. There's a long middle section where the two have gotten separated and are trying to find each other that could've been tightened up a bit. We don't get to see either one of them blow himself up, which some viewers will doubtless find to be a relief. I found the film to be engaging for the most part, with all sides of the moral question examined, and all points of view represented. Interesting. Grade: B-