LAST VISIT: Trailblazing Arthouse Cinema from Saudi Arabia
On Saturday, February 27th, Al-Bustan hosted a Q&A with LAST VISIT Director Abdulmohsen Aldhabaan and Producer Mohammed Alhamoud, moderated by Film Critic Joseph Fahim with translation by Al-Bustan's Executive Director Mohannad Ghawanmeh. Having hosted the US Premiere of this trailblazing Saudi film prior to the Q&A, Al-Bustan’s community was the first American audience to view the film. Insights and enquiries from our audience members delved into the central tensions of the film, in particular, generational friction and the repressive presence of masculinity that pervades the film.
“I loved Last Visit and I believe it has a powerful message about the importance of communication between parents and their teens.”“The sparse dialogue outlines the communication difficulties whether between the fathers and sons who are fully alive or between the moribund father and his son.”
As one of the first films made in Saudi Arabia in the wake of recent social and economic reforms, LAST VISIT feels, in some ways, risky. As Fahim notes in the Q&A, the film cannot be called particularly accessible or remotely commercial. Alhamoud and Aldhabaan both described the film as challenging and daring. These elements of the film are amplified when one considers not only the topic and cinematography used in the film but also its genesis from a group of Saudi cinephiles who were learning about film and filmmaking in an environment without cinemas or a cinema industry. The skill and groundbreaking character of the film should excite audiences about this generation of Saudi filmmakers as they explore film, society, and life.The tone of the film is utterly repressive. In their questions, the audience was quick to pick up on the ways in which Director Aldhabaan achieved this tone. Particularly striking was the absence of music and any female characters.
“I saw that a couple of scenes were supported by some sound effects; why did you not use music to support the narrative to emphasize certain dramatic scenes etc.?”[Is there] any particular reason why the role of the mother was not depicted in this film?Was there a reason no women were in the film?
You can watch the recorded Q&A with Abdulmohsen Aldhabaan, Mohammed Alhamoud, Joseph Fahim, and Mohannad Ghawanmeh below. We hope you join us for upcoming film programming.