Written and directed by leading actor Ashley Tabatabai, co-directed by Stefan Fairlamb, a bereaved immigration officer (Tabatabai) struggles with his role in the system after meeting a young Iranian brother and sister detained during the travel ban. Also starring: Mitchell Mullen, Arian Nik, Ayla Rose, Helene Maksoud, Emilio Doorgasingh, Baxter Gaston and Walles Hamonde.
First and foremost, Ashley Tabatabai picked an important, poignant and very under-discussed issue to explore in Hamdardi. There is constant discrimination and racism going on throughout the world but it’s not often that the leader of a country, particularly in the western world, makes a clearly prejudicial executive action while making no attempt to veil its biased intentions. That’s exactly what Trump did in 2017 when he restricted entry to the country for citizens of Iran, Iraq, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, and Yemen. Hamdardi dives into the experiences of those who fell victim to the ban and the unnecessary turmoil that it created.
There’s a great tension running throughout Hamdardi, particularly expressed through the directorial style of Tabatabai and Fairlamb. The aesthetic and atmosphere hold a sincere sharpness, the quality of the visual is strong and the shooting locations are perfect. That foundation goes a long way but as the film moves forward it can tend to be slow and fall into sentimental territory, missing out on tighter editing work and a more gripping pace. Which when combined with the stereotypical quality to the character of Hank (Mitchell Mullen), the film struggles to push itself further. Rather than grasping more strongly onto the political issues at work, it takes a distinctly personal perspective.
Regardless, it does a solid job opening up the conflict at work through its central performances. Starting with writer, director, Ashley Tabatabai who creates a hugely sympathetic character in Ethan and he pushes the emotional level right where it needs to be. He captures his character’s internal struggle both with work and his personal life in a very real and honest manner. There’s a genuine air to him which makes him a strong lead for the film.
Arian Nik and Ayla Rose then bring to life the opposite side of this story, those who are simply innocent victims caught in a whirlwind of discrimination. Nik brings the classic frustration, anger and fear, he’s moving between wanting to fight back against the prejudice and being afraid as a young, vulnerable man. Whereas Rose portrays an age of being blissfully unaware of the hatred that fuels their situation, which adds a tinge of sadness. Helene Maksoud then captures the middle ground with a lot of passion, determination and disappointment with a broken system.
Hamdardi is a touching and intimate exploration of prejudice on a mass scale. Ashley Tabatabai leads the way with a relatable and compellingly conflicted character. It’s shot extremely well and builds a tense and charged atmosphere. However, while it ultimately feels like the filmmakers had the best of intentions and a truly worthy story to tell, the tone was split between the political and personal sides and the latter took over too much. It moves slowly, often taking a few beats longer than it needs to, to let the emotion of the moment land and sadly that undercuts the sharpness it has to offer.
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