2/25/26 - Sirat (2025) - 7/10

A f*cking ride. There was no bigger gut punch in a film that I saw all year. This was a fearless film that left you guessing as to the nature of the journey, let alone its dramatic ends. It would be best to know nothing of this film beyond the premise (a man and his son search for their lost daughter/sister in the unfamiliar rave scene of North Africa) when going in but be prepared for intensity.

This is one of the films I have pondered the most since my viewing. What is the meaning of it all? What is the significance of all the loss? Is it simply to shock the audience? Is it all tied up in the WWIII rumblings or the refugees? Is the music the opiate that soothes and medicates this band of miscreants & loners, looking for solace from a life of pain and welcomes in both a new member and perhaps us as the audience as well? And is it speaking to this missing daughter, the Macguffen of the plot, and her escape from life with her family and her time with this new music centered cadre? Is it the lost leading the lost on a fruitless quest beyond the horrific journey - is that a metaphor for life? It’s all a quest for meaning an truth.

SIRAT: The bridge over hell to paradise, often symbolizing taking the righteous path of life... when taken in that context the embattled road through hellish turns, complete with fire and suffering of all kinds, whispers at the aim of the filmmaker.. is the main characters principled path through a veritable mine field, something that like his entire mission was ill conceived and irresponsible, emblematic of his guarded moral voyage through the mire of doubt, loss, and uncertainty about the very bedrock of our existence?

Honestly, that's movies and that's why I love them. I may not have full grasp of the meaning or the intent, but the experience has lasted months or years past those 2 hours. I think the director ensorcelled with their play of expectation, tension build/release, and wringing marked meaning out of the music and mugs of these mostly non-actors.

I think the whole thing would have garnered even more praise from me but the denouement felt ill defined and thus purpose-adjacent. But, I am riveted to see what they do next.