Since arriving on Netflix on December 1st, the film Farha, directed by Darin J. Sallam, hasn’t appealed to everyone. By telling the story of the Nakba from a Palestinian perspective, the platform has drawn the wrath of Israel.
NETFLIX
In Farha, Palestinian-Jordanian director Darin J. Sallam sets her storyline in 1948 Palestine. Here, her heroine, a 14-year-old girl played by young Karam Taher, watches from a locked pantry key as the disaster devastates his home. Most call this catastrophe the Nakba.
It denotes the exodus of the Palestinians and the dispossession of their land after the establishment of the State of Israel. A somewhat sensitive topic on paper, which did not prevent the feature film from being presented at the Toronto Film Festival last year.
It is Netflix that has offered the broadcasting rights in the world. Farha could have arrived discreetly at the train station on December 1, had not an Israeli minister expressed his dissatisfaction and resentment with the events narrated in the film in a press release: “It’s crazy that Netflix has decided to air a film , whose sole purpose is to incite hatred against Israeli soldiers”.
As reported by BFM TV, the government’s finance minister, Avigdor Lieberman, also threatened to “stop paying public money to a theater in Jaffa, south of Tel Aviv, that wants to show the film”.
Another controversy in France
In France, Netflix must respond to another controversy voiced by users on Twitter. The latter, in fact, explain that Farha cannot be found on the platform and that you have to go through a Google search to be able to see it.
does anyone know why there is no farha film on netflix? It’s a worldwide release, right?
— Indigo ⟡ (@hobsvIog) December 5, 2022
This film is not available on Netflix, what a pity! We don’t pay to be dependent on the decisions of some lobbyists. All issues are usually dealt with without problems, do you receive threats? if not then post it. #farha #FarhaNetflix #Netflix
— Mon ✌🏽 (@Mohamed02974899) December 5, 2022
Upon our request, Netflix wanted to reveal some details, which we share with you below:
“We present personalized recommendations to our subscribers based on multiple factors (taste, device used, viewing habits, etc.). One of the important criteria relates to the subscriber’s preferred language. There are no voiceovers or subtitles in the Subscriber’s preferred language is deemed irrelevant and is therefore not available on the Service. his account in English, and the title becomes available. This does not only apply to this film. In reality, in this case, there are many programs that are not available in French.
To be able to switch to an English account, just click on “Manage Profiles”, select the one you want and change the language. You can then find the movie by typing it into the search bar. Currently, Farha is only available in Arabic with English subtitles.
If you want to go even further, you should know that in October 2021 Netflix released a collection of movies and series by Palestinian creators that you can discover here.