In the Shadows of the City

Rami (12) lives on a small farm in South Lebanon. When the acts of violence increase there, he and his family have to leave the area. He finds himself in Beirut, where he works in a bar while dreaming of a future as an artist. Then the Civil War breaks out. A friend of his is killed in the bar. Another friend, Yasmin, leaves the district. When Rami is kidnapped with his father, he manages to escape and joins the fighters. Then he meets Siham, a woman who is determined to find her missing husband. She makes Rami start to have his doubts about his dedication to the war.In the Shadows of the City provides a picture of the war in Lebanon, seen through the eyes of a child of 12. In addition, the film throws a light on more than 17,000 abductions that took place during the war. It is the first feature by Jean Chamoun, and it does justice to his past as a maker of documentary films. He used both amateur and professional actors and his own archive footage, filmed in 1975, in 1992 and after the war. Chamoun has not just made a shocking document of the war, but especially focused attention on the fact that those responsible are still at large. A carefully made film, with humorous and moving moments, in which hope can be found in the power and love of ordinary people.