Paradise Now

I guess we the reason we watched this film is to spot the misrepresentation of islamic culture and the stereotypical concept of fanatic terrorism. The 2 main characters, however, are represented in a positive way, people that we would like to meet in the beginning and therefore, understand their motivation afterwards. Said and Khaled are childhood friends who have grown up in Nablus, Palestine and feel that their whole life has been oppressed by Israel. Their heroes are martyrs whose main goal is justice and tolerance, so they decide to go on the same path. Said's father has died as a collaborator, something he doesn't see himself as. In this difficult atmosphere of political incorrectness, Suha tries to convince Said in more peaceful methods of fight and struggle. She is a daughter of a famous martyr and doesn't see the point of such death, since it hasn't changed the injustice Palestinians are living in.  At first she reaches his heart and he's unsure of wether is right to continue on this path, but later on he's the one who pulls the cord and blows off the Israeli bus. Khaled eventually changes his mind and steps back  from the whole operation, tries to save his friend too but fails. One of the scenes where Khaled is about to be recorded holding a gun and a powerful speech is very interesting regarding the perception of such occupation.  His comrades are eating, the camera is not working as if it's not a big deal to the people who organize the whole event. Probably that's a hint that the mission matters only to our main characters, who are actually manipulated by their weaknesses.

I am not sure what the message of the film is supposed to be: for example, what makes the martyrs choose this path? Is it the posters in the town center that makes them heroes,  the honor to be chosen for such mission, or the endless hope that their sacrifice is worth. Suha is depicted as a strong female character, she has her own believes and stands up to them. Probably Said's reasons to carry out the operation despite the first obstacle, is his lack of desire to go back into the same old reality. I was hoping both characters (Suha and Said) to end up together :( In terms of character development, Said and Khaled swapped their roles and believes, they both suffered changes which made me buy into it.