The Price of Kings: Yasser Arafat

The first of 12 films on world leaders planned by documentarian Richard Symons, The Price of Kings: Yasser Arafat focuses on Yasser Arafat (1929–2004), who was instrumental in bringing the plight of displaced Palestinians to the world's attention but ultimately failed to achieve a Palestinian state. Symons' chronological approach combines archival material with narration by Helena Bonham Carter to cover Arafat's life, barely sketching his youth before moving on to his founding of Fatah—the nationalist Palestinian political organization—in the late 1950s. The assessment here, presented primarily through interviews with family members (including wife Suha) and colleagues in the Palestine Liberation Organization, is largely positive, although occasional criticisms are voiced by more radical Palestinian activists and even admirers like Guido de Marco, the former president of Malta, who considers some of Arafat's decisions to be unwise. But Israelis such as Shimon Peres are also shown praising Arafat's courage in engaging the Israeli government directly, an opening that led to the 1993 Oslo Accords. Unfortunately, the assassination of Yitzhak Rabin poisoned the process, and the rightward turn in Israeli politics and the rise of more militant Palestinian groups like Hamas eventually led to Arafat's isolation in Ramallah, where he died. While raising the possibility that he might have been poisoned, the documentary doesn't belabor the conspiracy theory. Some viewers may find the vaguely hagiographic tone objectionable, but this is a useful overview of Arafat's importance in modern Middle Eastern history. DVD extras include bonus scenes and soundtrack excerpts. Also newly available is the second film in the series, The Price of Kings: Shimon Peres. Recommended. Aud: C, P. (F. Swietek)