Most parts of Bassel Ghandour’s debut feature are familiar, but the way it’s put together feels pretty unique. It’s like a spy thriller except the spies are gossipy neighbors, the binoculars are smartphones, and the intel comes from chats in barbershops and salons rather than from self-destructing messages. It’s also Romeo and Juliet, except instead of feuding families, it’s blackmail and cultural norms keeping them apart. On top of all this, it’s also a gangster film, just taking place in the labyrinthine alleys the movie is titled after. Admittedly, it loses a bit of steam when it shifts to its fourth chapter. Still, The Alleys takes old stories and styles it in a fun and novel way.
In a claustrophobic neighborhood where gossip and violence police people's behavior, the lives of residents intertwine and collide as some try to maintain social norms while others try to break them.
In the streets of East Amman, young hustler Ali struggles to keep his relationship with Lana hidden from their gossipy neighbors. However, when an extortionist records them on video, Lana’s mother Aseel pleads with local gangster Abbas to put an end to the blackmail.
Every time the film zooms into the people, plays its incredible score, and goes into narration, I really get Pavloved into expecting a new twist to the story. So brilliant!
Go Lana!
