Free Republic

The Palestinian film "Paradise Now," which sympathetically depicts the lives of two Palestinian terrorists, won the Golden Globe and was nominated by the Academy of Motion Pictures in Hollywood for the best foreign film Oscar. How is it possible, I ask myself, that such a film is acclaimed by people of culture? The main reason is that terrorists active against Israel are regarded by many as freedom fighters, whose motives should be readily understood. One word has transformed Palestinian terrorists into sympathetic figures in certain quarters, and has tainted all political discussion surrounding the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. That word is "occupation."...

Maybe it's foolish to go over the topic of freedom of expression again, after the insulting cartoons of the noble Prophet were published … and after the tide of Western democracy has washed over the Arab and Muslim world, leaving in its wake traces of corpses, body parts, coffins and tombs. But what's happening with Israeli influence in the United States raises even more questions. There are now two films in Hollywood, one by the American-Jewish director Steven Spielberg, about the Munich incident, in which Israeli athletes were killed - mostly by the bullets of German police, and not by...

Asaf loved surfing and loud music. He is now gone because a suicide murderer decided it's legitimate to blow himself up on a crowded bus. The bus after the bombing on March 5th, 2003 where Asaf Tzur was murdered. Last night the Palestinian movie "Paradise now" won the golden globe award. The movie shows the route that two young Palestinians take in becoming suicide murderers until the minute they board a children's bus in Tel Aviv. The movie looks professional. The movie was done with great care for detail and is extremely dangerous not only to the Middle East but...

Nothing tells you more about Hollywood than what it chooses to honor. Nominated for best foreign film is "Paradise Now," a sympathetic portrayal of two suicide bombers. Nominated for best picture is "Munich," a sympathetic portrayal of yesterday's fashion in barbarism: homicide terrorism. But until you see "Syriana," nominated for best screenplay (and George Clooney, for best supporting actor) you have no idea how self-flagellation and self-loathing pass for complexity and moral seriousness in Hollywood. "Syriana's" script has, of course, the classic liberal tropes such as this stage direction: "The Deputy National Security Advisor, MARILYN RICHARDS, 40's, sculpted hair, with...

Jews run Hollywood, some say. If they do, one might expect them to produce films that better reflect their heritage and values, rather than serve as apologists for those who wish to exterminate the Jewish people. Sunday's Academy Awards ceremony will not only be about the homosexual-friendly flick "Brokeback Mountain" but also about whether the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences will award an Oscar to a film called "Paradise Now," which in January won the Golden Globe for Best Foreign Film. The Golden Globes often foretell likely Oscar winners.

Nothing tells you more about Hollywood than what it chooses to honor. Nominated for Best Foreign Film is "Paradise Now," a sympathetic portrayal of two suicide bombers. Nominated for Best Picture is "Munich," a sympathetic portrayal of yesterday's fashion in barbarism: homicide terrorism. But until you see "Syriana," nominated for Best Screenplay (and George Clooney, for Best Supporting Actor) you have no idea how self-flagellation and self-loathing pass for complexity and moral seriousness in Hollywood. The "Syriana" script has, of course, the classic liberal tropes such as this stage direction: "The deputy national security adviser, MARILYN RICHARDS, 40s, sculpted hair,...

By Debbie Schlussel I've been detailing, for some time (here and here), my objections to the pro-homicide bomber movie, "Paradise Now," which is nominated for this weekend's Oscar for best foreign language film. I "debated" the film's producer, Berro Beyer, on Al-Jazeera (if you can call his listening to my answers, then giving his rebuttal after I was already off the air, a "debate"). As I've said before, the film is objectionable for so many reasons: the map of hate, no Israel, no Jews, forwarding the myth that Jews poison Arab water to ruin sperm, glorifying homicide bombers, never showing...

Nothing tells you more about Hollywood than what it chooses to honor. Nominated for best foreign-language film is "Paradise Now," a sympathetic portrayal of two suicide bombers. Nominated for best picture is "Munich," a sympathetic portrayal of yesterday's fashion in barbarism: homicide terrorism. But until you see "Syriana," nominated for best screenplay (and George Clooney, for best supporting actor) you have no idea how self-flagellation and self-loathing pass for complexity and moral seriousness in Hollywood.

Hany Abu-Assad, Israeli-born director of Oscar-nominated film ‘Paradise Now,’ which has stirred controversy for its depiction of two young Palestinian suicide bombers, says in interview with Yedioth Ahronoth terror derives from another terror and that suicide bombings are a reaction to Israel's terrorHOLLYWOOD - Hany Abu-Assad's film "Paradise Now" left few Israelis indifferent. The movie, which depicts the story of two young Palestinians in Nablus who were chosen by a local terror group to carry out a suicide bombing in Israel, and which trails their preparations ahead of the attack, infuriated many in the country, most notably publicist Irit Linor,...

JERUSALEM (Reuters) - A group of Israelis who lost children to Palestinian suicide bombings appealed on Wednesday to organizers of next week's Academy Awards to disqualify a film exploring the reasoning behind such attacks. The bereaved parents said they had gathered more than 32,000 signatures on a petition against the nomination in the best foreign film category of "Paradise Now", a drama about two West Bank friends recruited to blow themselves up in Tel Aviv. The controversial film was made by an Israeli Arab director and actors working with a Palestinian crew and locations. The producer was a Jewish Israeli...

Oscar security will be "massive" this year according to law enforcement sources. An FBI official, who did not want to be identified, tells TMZ the prospect of terrorist threats is "pretty huge." Another law enforcement source says there's greater concern than usual because of 'Paradise Now,' a controversial film about two would-be Palestinian suicide bombers who target Israel. The movie is up for Best Foreign Language Film. An LAPD official tells TMZ that the law enforcement presence won't increase because of the film, adding that resources are "sufficient" to cover the event. The FBI official says the Oscars are a...

To: The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences "Paradise Now" is a movie that attempts to explain away the actions behind mass-murderers. This mere act in-effect legitimizes this type of mass-murder & portrays the murderers themselves as victims! There is NO way to legitimize this form of mass-murder. Hundreds of innocent men, women & children have been murdered by "palestinian" suicide-murderers in the past few years. Giving an Oscar to this movie will glorify these murderers & the groups that have sent them. It may even encourage more murders of this type. This petition has been influenced after reading...

From the official Academy site, for the nominees for Foreign Film: “Paradise Now” An Augustus Film Production Palestine The Golden Globe Award went to this same film. I have no idea what it's about other than I've heard it "humanizes" terrorists. But I have to say I'm surprised that Hollywood has gone so far as to nominate this for Foreign Film the same year it's nominated Munich for Best Picture, and list it as being from "Palestine". Such blatant siding with the liberal side in Israel is unusual.

Oscar nod for terror film a dreadful call By YOSSI ZUR The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences on Tuesday nominated the Palestinian movie "Paradise Now" for Best Foreign Language film. The film follows the path of two young Palestinians from their decision to become suicide bombers to the moment they board a Tel Aviv bus crowded with children. "Paradise Now," directed by Hany Abu-Assad, is a very professional production, created with great care for detail. It also is an extremely dangerous piece of work, not only for Israel and the Middle East, but the whole world.

The Palestinian film "Paradise Now," which explores the lives of a pair of suicide bombers and just won the Golden Globe for best foreign film, got two thumbs down Tuesday in this tough West Bank city where it was filmed. Although the film which snared the Golden Globe in Los Angeles on Monday has never been screened in Nablus, residents here said the clips they saw on satellite television portrayed the bombers as godless and less than heroic. "This movie doesn't help the Palestinian cause," said an armed Palestinian militant who would not give his name because he's on the...

DUBAI, Dec 11 (Reuters) - Hollywood and Arab stars converged on the Gulf Arab city of Dubai on Sunday for a festival of world film that opened with a movie about why Palestinians carry out suicide bombings. The cast of "Paradise Now" were feted at the opening ceremony along with U.S. box-office pulls such as Morgan Freeman and Matrix star Laurence Fishburne, Arab stars Adel Imam and Leila Elwi and French-Algerian rai singer Faudel. Now in its second year, the Dubai International Film Festival has set itself the ambitious goal of being a "cultural bridge" between the West and the...

Nov. 11, 2005 - Hany Abu-Assad is nervous. In just two hours, his new film, “Paradise Now,” will premier in Tel Aviv. But there’s more to it than just opening night jitters for Abu-Assad. The director is Palestinian, the audience is Israeli, and his film is about the lives and moral struggles of two suicide bombers. “I’m trying to take deep breaths,” he laughs. “But it doesn’t seem to be helping.” It wouldn’t be the first time a film about terrorists, or freedom fighters (depending which side of the wall you’re on), has shown in Israel. But “Paradise Now,” a...

The man behind a new documentary on suicide bombers opening in San Francisco next week said he found "enormous human depth" within them. Hany Abu-Assad, who describes himself as a Palestinian, says when he set out to research suicide bombers in the West Bank, he imagined them as heartless monsters. "Like anybody else," director of "Paradise Now" said in an interview with the San Jose Mercury News, "I thought they had been brainwashed." No longer. "When you do research, you discover two things,'' he says. "You are shocked that there is enormous human depth in these kinds of people. They...