No Other Land
Natalie Portman Teaches Acting
A young Palestinian activist documents the Israeli displacement of the local villages in No Other Land. Basel Adra is a young activist living in Masafer Yatta, Palestinian West Bank. For decades, the Israeli military has been displacing the local villages, claiming that the land is meant as a training zone. With the help of sympathetic Israeli journalist Yuval Abraham, Basel films the violent acts of the Israeli forces and posts the videos to social media.
No Other Land Synopsis
No Other Land is a documentary directed by a collective that includes Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham, Hamdan Ballal, and Rachel Szor. The film was shot between 2019 and 2023, showing how the Israeli military displaced and demolished the villages in Masafer Yatta. The film is told from the perspective of Basel Adra, who has committed himself to sharing this violence, at great risk to himself and others.
My Thoughts on No Other Land
No Other Land is a guerilla-style documentary that depicts the longstanding Israeli/Palestinian conflict from the latter’s perspective. Israeli settlers have been displacing the villagers from their homes, forcing them to live in caves. While the Israeli government denies the land ever belonging to these villagers, Basel Adra has made it his goal to prove otherwise.
While No Other Land is most affecting through its depiction of Israeli violence against the villagers, the film also focuses on the growing friendship between Basel Adra and Yuval Abraham. While Yuval is viewed as an outsider by many in Masafer Yatta, he is one of the few Israelis in the film to be sympathetic towards Palestinians. The film’s intended ending involved a quiet moment between Basel and Yuval.
The aspect of No Other Land that leaves the most lasting impression is the film’s epilogue showing Basel Adra’s final video shot in the aftermath of the October 7 attack, which includes a very shocking moment of Israeli-on-Palestinian violence. This results in No Other Land being a documentary that provides a much-needed context to this ongoing conflict. If only Israel and Palestine as a whole could get along as well as No Other Land‘s two main subjects.
Trailer for No Other Land
