Heiny Srour is one of the coolest people alive. If you ever have a chance to see her talk, you should do so. If you have a chance to read her book, you should do so. And obviously, you should watch all of the films she has made and pray she somehow gets to make more. She is a true artist.
4. The Singing Sheikh [1991]
“I will never be disheartened as long as I breathe.”
The Singing Sheikh is a slighter Srour film that is a nice little garnish to her overall body of work. It is about a small artist who refuses to give into despair in the face of oppression and still continues to fight on trying to make art designed to inspire resistance.
3. Rising Above: Women of Vietnam [1992]
Heiny Srour’s primary focus as a filmmaker and storyteller is on women in revolutionary contexts. This fifty-minute documentary focuses on women who took place in the Vietnamese resistance against western imperialism. While this film was far more conventionally told than Srour’s best work, it was nonetheless valuable and interesting. It is worth watching.
2. The Hour of Liberation Has Arrived [1974]
The Dhofar revolution is one of the most under-discussed acts of resistance against the Western Empire (and its puppets) that I can think of. This hour-long documentary by Heiny Srour fearlessly captures the POV of the rebels as they attempt to build a better world for themselves and their people. You have never see anything like it, and you must watch it now.
“People of the Gulf, unite
and carry on the fight.
O brother in poverty
let’s drive the enemies of the People
out of our land.
People of the Gulf, unite
and carry on the fight.
The western invaders
occupy our land
all over the Arabian Gulf
hiding our sun.”
1. Leila & the Wolves [1984]
Simply put, this is one of the coolest films ever made. Heiny Srou made an impressionist film about what it feels like to be woman in a revolutionary and anti-settler colonial context. The past, present, and future happen all at once in the film just as they do in real life. You are dealing both with settler colonialism from the outside world and internal misogyny from within your people. There is no film like this one; it stands alone. Srour is one of our greatest artists, and this is her master work. It is essential viewing for all.
The Reel World 