Photo courtesy of WILLA.
Few films evoke the justified buzz of Kaouther Ben Hania’s Golden Globe-nominated docudrama, “The Voice of Hind Rajab.”
The film broke records at the Venice Film Festival this year, where it won the Grand Jury Prize, and its 23-minute standing ovation became the longest ever recorded at a film festival.
Hind Rajab was a 5-year-old Palestinian girl driving through the Tel al-Hawa neighborhood in Gaza with her uncle, aunt and three cousins when the Israeli Defense Forces attacked their car, killing everyone but her. She called the emergency services, staying on the phone with them for hours, until the military killed her too.
The centerpiece of the film is the original recorded audio of Hind’s call, recovered from the Red Crescent database for the cast, playing emergency call center operators, to act alongside. In this film, you are listening to the voice of a 5-year-old child at her most desperate and alone, on the day of her murder—one of tens of thousands who’ve died in the war.
As much as they want to, no one in the call center is able to physically help Hind, and the frustration as they deal with the Israeli military’s red tape to confirm a safe route for their rescuers turns to suspense, to hope, and then to dread. This feeling of desperate helplessness is stomach-churning, as the callers watch and listen to the senseless violence from a distance. There’s nothing they can do.
It feels reductive to address a film like this on a technical level, but this film knows exactly what it is, and the weight of its truth. It doesn’t try to reinvent the wheel, instead executing technical skill on a very high level to reinforce the story.
Ben Hania employs a cinema verité style that relies heavily on close-ups, delicate focus adjustments, and handheld camerawork to capture the claustrophobic and frenetic drama of the film. In particular, the visual motif of the soundwave of Hind’s call conjuring the lifeline on a heart monitor continues to cross my mind—an extremely effective and simple way to showcase the immediacy of the situation.
“The Voice of Hind Rajab” is not a call to action, but rather a cry out in darkness. There is evil and injustice in this world, but beyond helping where and how we can, sometimes all we can do is turn our gaze to see its reflection in our eyes. Do not avert your eyes. Do not miss this film.
“The Voice of Hind Rajab” opens at Midtown Cinema in early 2026.
January Events
at Midtown Cinema
Down in Front!
Comedy riffing
“Rocketship X-M” (1950)
Friday, Jan. 9, 9:30ish
3rd in the Burg Movie Night
“Nacho Libre” (2006)
Friday, Jan. 16, 9:30 p.m.
Saturday Morning Cartoon
“My Neighbor Totoro” (1988)
Saturday, Jan. 17, 11 a.m.
Late Night Frights
“Videodrome” (1983)
Friday, Jan. 23, 9:30 p.m.
Midtown Cinema is located at 250 Reily St., Harrisburg. For more information, visit www.midtowncinema.com. Gabriel Brown serves as assistant manager at Midtown Cinema.
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