Anyone searching for a balanced, journalistically objective treatment of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict is advised to look elsewhere. John Pilger's documentary--following up his identically named 1977 film--is a piece of highly charged reportage, impassioned and decidedly one-sided. Pilger's argument is, quite simply, that the Palestinian people have been oppressed for decades by what he flatly calls Israeli state terrorism, and that the western powers have been instrumental in perpetuating this awful state of affairs. Many will offhandedly dismiss this point of view as mere propaganda (and perhaps accuse him of anti-Semitism), but there is no denying that this film, featuring interviews with some who have suffered during the occupation as well as Israelis who deplore their own country's policies, puts a human face on the Palestinian experience that western audiences rarely have the opportunity to see. Palestine Is Still the Issue serves up only half of the debate, of course, but it's the half we generally don't hear. Recommended. Aud: C, P. (F. Swietek)
Palestine Is Still the Issue
(2002) 53 min. VHS: $250. Bullfrog Films. PPR. Color cover. ISBN: 1-56029-958-4. Volume 18, Issue 4
Palestine Is Still the Issue
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