perspective is everything. I’m Abe to watch films from the comfort of air conditioning, with food and drink easily in reach, and without the fear of being bombed in the middle of all of it. of course, we all have struggles, and trying too compare to race to the bottom seems fruitless, as despite circumstances, there is almost undoubtedly someone who has less, and worse. All we can do is take the life we’ve been given, and shine light on things around us that need improving. That’s why this review is titled going in blind, because that’s my perspective, and even though this documentary is a knockout, it doesn’t have audio description. it seems to be my sole purpose in life, so I have to stay on the train, even for a film about war torn Palestine.

Director Sepideh Farsi uses her perspective as a Palestinian outside of the region to communicate with a friend inside the conflict. The film is mostly over phone calls, whether shown over FaceTime or just audio,this grips you with the hope that our friend on the inside will be OK. As the signal waivers, and the bombs seem to be closing in, fate does not seem to be on her side.

And, spoiler alert, it isn’t. Not within the confines of the project, but the subject of the film was killed in an air strike shortly before the film premiered at Cannes. She died the day after it was announced the film had made the Cannes slate.So as you watch, which you absolutely should, this is a case much like the extraordinary Come See Me In the Good Light, where the subject almost got to enjoy the rapturous response to their film, but not quite. Hopefully, her communications out of Gaza make for a compelling narrative that give enough people pause about the conflict and the damage left behind.

There always seems to be an inability to separate a violent offender from a non violent offender when those involved are not white.It becomes rather easy to quickly group in an entire population as terrorists, despite so many disagreeing with those giving them that reputation to begin with. There’s never been a more timely representation of this as one refugee is causing not just a pause in immigration from his own country, but that same xenophobia is being applied to other countries not even remotely involved. One man has been used as the scapegoat to stop looking at asylum cases altogether. If that man had been white, nothing would have changed.

As the year progresses and I see documentaries I like, I always know something is going to come along and punch me in the face. I’d like to say this is that film, as it is mostly in English, even without the audio description. I also know there are more documentaries about the war in Gaza, as well as Ukraine, and even narrative features. The world may be in serious trouble, but there are still only five Oscar spots. I’m certain this will make the shortlist, but I’m unclear if the impact from this will be greater than like-minded features to get it in the final five.

We need more films like this to keep us grounded. this is why I advocate for world cinema to have audio description, because without it, travel bans, and blocking immigration from countries we don’t understand happens in the blink of an eye with zero resistance. But for journalists like Fatima Hassouna, the 25 year old photojournalist featured here who gave her life to prioritize accountability, the hope is that what they leave behind means something, and leaves an impact.

Much like last year’s effective No Other Land, this documentary once again asks those who allow this to happen to consider the endgame, and the ramifications of genocide.

Put Your Soul On your Hand And Walk is more than one of the best films this year, it is actually one of the most urgent and important.

Fresh: final Grade: 7.0/10 (I’d go higher if it had audio description)