Great Film overall

The film makes a home in your brain and the only cure is to see it again.

The movie's neither hopeful in contrived ways, nor hopeless in different contrived ways. Somehow it manages to be wonderful

The film never slows down or bores, plunging from one harrowing sequence to the next.

Paradise now is about two friends who are preparing for a suicide bombing. However, there is never an explosion, and that makes the ending indecisive. At the end of the movie said is siting on a bus full of soldiers and the camera zoomed into his eyes. Then the screen turns white. I thought that was very dramatic, and though the explosion is not shown, I think it still happened. Said seemed to be set on going through with his suicide weather he killed people or not, but I believe that he thought he would avenge his father in the process. Overall I liked the movie but it had a very slow beginning, so it was hard to get into it at first. I also noticed that there was not any background music. I feel that if there was music it would have held my interest better in the beginning, but I am not to sure if it would have made much of a difference.

Life turns violent when Said and Khaled, who are best friends, get recruited by a terrorist group to bomb Israel because of past conflict. However, their mission is almost spoiled after one of the men gets separated from the other, but after complications they reunite, only to find that Khaled has had a change of heart. He tries to get his friend to come back home with him and to not kill, but Said has his mind made up, and goes for it. Overall, I thought that the storyline to this movie was clever and interesting. However, I didn't really like it because it was super confusing and (in my opinion) unclear at times. I found myself really lost as to who was who, and what was going on. Part of this may be because Khaled and Said switched opinions so fast and spontaneously. For example, Khaled was very on board to carry out the terrorist attack on Tel Aviv, when Said was not. Then suddenly, Khaled had a change of heart and decided to not go through with it, and Said became so caught up and focused on it, he did end up going through with it even though he had to do it alone! I wish that this film was a little different in the sense that it was more lucid. I found that I also had to focus a lot on the dialogue, because this was one of those films that if you miss something, you miss a lot and will end up confused. My favorite character was Suha because she seemed to be the most level- headed out of all the characters. After all, she was the one who ended up convincing Khaled not to attack, and her points that she made about being "equal" were so so true and valid even in real life when it comes to terrorism and bad things people do. Towards the end, I liked Said less and less as I started to like Khaled more and more, because (I think) Said ended up attacking Tel Aviv, and Khaled did the right thing to just go home.

Incredibly powerful and intricately detailed, highly acclaimed and widely controversial. "Paradise Now," is a compelling, tightly made thriller set in Nablus, on the West Bank, and lays bare the humanity and the horror for all to see. The film provides a gripping and terrifying insight into the mindset of martyrs by turning the camera on two Palestinian suicide bombers during what they assume to be their final 48 hours. The story places two close friends, Said (Kais Nashif) and Khaled (Kais Nashif), recruits by an extremist group to perpetrate a terrorist attack, a suicide mission, in Tel-Aviv. Both men are bathed, shaved, and made to look like Israeli settlers; then they are then strapped with explosives, dressed in dark suits, and are off to carry out their orders. However, things go wrong and both friends must separate at the Palestine border. One of two will maintain in his purpose of carrying out the attack to the very end, and the other will begin to have his doubts. Despite condoning their actions and motives, you can't but help to watch the film with a fearsome fascination. The film sustains a mood of breathless suspense. "Paradise Now" is a thriller whose shrewdly inserted plot twists and emotional wrinkles are calculated to put your heart in your throat and keep it there. The movie humanizes the anonymous faces we often see in the news. The director and co-writer, Hany Abu- Assad, undercut any heroism of these young martyrs by presenting their everyday actions with moments of dark humor. During one taping of a farewell message, the video camera malfunctions half way through, and he must start over from the beginning. During another taping, one of the bombers interrupts his political sermon with a personal shopping reminder for his mother. The ending is gut-wrenching as it yanks the carpet from under your feet. A purposeful statement that strips away any glamour of terrorism, whatever the cause, reason, or rationale they use to justify it. Their inhuman mission aside, "Paradise Now" does compel an appreciation for these unfortunate young men blindly accepting their fate with empty promises. This is the first Palestinian film to be nominated for an Academy Award.

Really not that many movies concerning the Israeli–Palestinian conflict have been made throughout the years, simply because it's something that remains a very controversial and delicate subject. It's hard to come up with a movie that sheds some light on the whole situation, without really picking sides or offend a large group of people. I however feel that "Paradise Now" managed this and besides did a surprisingly great job at it as well.As strange as it might sound, this is not really a political movie, since it isn't really picking sides. Even though it's a movie from the Palestinian territories, you can't really accuse the movie for being Palestinian propaganda as well. That's simply not what the movie is all about! It's actually more of a neutral observation of the whole Israeli–Palestinian conflict, that just happens to focus on Palestinian characters. It's not saying that anything they, or the Israelis, do is right or wrong. It simply shows the effects of the whole conflict on the lives of two very ordinary young men, who's lives are heavily influenced and ultimately, unavoidably affected, by the conflict. It's like the course of their lives had already been set out, before they were even born, just because of the time and place they were born at.The movie is asking itself all sorts of questions. Of course it's not providing any solutions to the whole conflict but again, this really wasn't the movie its intention. But something that the movie does bring up is if violence brings you any closer to a possible solution and if it will achieve anything at all. Can one life or one kill make really a difference?The movie does provide an unique look into the minds of suicide terrorists. This is still where most of the movie its controversy comes from. You also have to remember this movie got released in 2006, when the whole subject was even more controversial, due to the whole state and situation the world was still in at the time. Perhaps the movie would be considered somewhat less controversial if it got made and released today. But you could also turn things around and say that the movie got released at a perfect and relevant place in time.But really, this movie is not approving or glorifying terrorism in any way. On the contrary quite really, in my opinion!It's also refreshing for once to see things from the perspective of suicide bombers and show their human side. It's not like they are happy to go, or are completely without doubt. They actually question their coming actions constantly and wonder if it's really the right thing to do. The closer they get to their 'goal' the more doubts and questions start to arise in their heads. You also won't sympathize for them but you will perhaps understand their actions and motives better after watching this movie.Again, this movie won't turn you pro-Palestine or pro-Israel but it does shed an unique light on the whole situation and tells the story from a side that is not often being handled in movies or documentaries.A true daring project from director and writer Hany Abu-Assad, who ultimately did a great job at telling the story. It's a skillfully made movie, that is realistic looking and feeling, which makes it a bit of a shame that the script is also being filled by some not so likely developments, that perhaps belong more in a less serious or heavy thriller. This is the case in the second half of the movie and the only reason why I just can't really call this movie a perfect one or an absolute must-see.Nevertheless, the movie still remains a very effective and successful one, at what it was ultimately trying to achieve; showing the whole hopelessness, as well as the human-side of the Israeli–Palestinian conflict. The conflict as it is and was at the time knows only losers, while the innocents are doing the suffering and are paying the price for it.8/10 http://bobafett1138.blogspot.com/