An Insult That Led To Jury?

Films capture perspectives we are not always able to view. The imagery and messages behind a specific film can lead viewers into learning or becoming motivated off of one film.Since the Lebanese film, The Insult directed by Lebanese cinematographer, Ziad Doueiri came out in 2017, it was already shortlisted for the foreign-language film Oscar. The film shows off the effects of the Labanese civil war setting in the modern day and how even minor interpersonal tensions can become a national trauma. In this film it shows a Lebanese Christian man, Tony and a Palestinian refugee, Yasser as they conflict. The film shows how one small altercation can become so much more than one simple insult.

This film began on a Beirut residential street, where a man named Tony Hanna and his pregnant wife stay at. The crew’s foreman Yasser Salameh notices an illegal pipe on Tony’s apartment and offers to go out of his way just to fix it. Even after Tony slams the door in Yassers face, Yasser still decides to fix it without Tony’s permission.The story really starts when Tony is breaking his own pipe leading Yasser to insulting Tony. This then leads out to bigger and more complex conflicts.

I was surprised that one small insult can be taken to court and why Tony felt so scared of Yasser.In the beginning when Tony slammed the door in Yasser’s face, it seemed to be about his beliefs. Even after the first trial Yasser went to Tony’s garage to apologize and Yasser ended up punching Tony in the gut. Tony then told Yasser “I wish ArielSharon had wiped all of you out” who is the Israeli general, proving this was about religious differences.

When the second trial happened, each man became accused of religion or a religious community.Tony was represented by a lawyer named Wajdi Wehbe, a famous Christian trial lawyer, with a large legal team. And Yasser was represented by Nadine Wehbe, a brilliant young attorney who is Wajdi Wehbe’s daughter. Which caused more dispute in the courtroom. Once the second trial ended it provoked a violent outburst from each religious community.

The cultural differences of Tony and Yasser caused a miscommunication that led to the trial to begin with. The film shows a great example of the fragility of society in Arab countries like Lebanon even after its civil war, and is less about the court case itself. The issues with a hatred of another kind can lead to a lot of drama. It seems clear that if Yasser was not a Palestinian refugee the situation would have been less chaotic. The question that remains is why individuals of opposing groups must take things as far as political differences when emotion comes into play.