Capernaum (2018)

Labaki’s Capernaum is a stirring and essential piece of social realism, and it stands as her strongest film so far. The camera spends real time in the slum streets, and the cinematography of those settings is vividly lived-in. Above all, the picture feels compassionate toward people who are struggling just to get by, and it never looks down on them.

The lead performance by Zain Alrafeea is extraordinary, carrying much of the film’s emotional weight. The story stays close to a child’s point of view and refuses to turn his hardship into easy spectacle.

The one reservation is the ending. The push toward a hopeful conclusion feels a little cheesy and contrived, although a bleaker finish might have felt too cruel and hopeless. Even so, the film’s overall power comes through clearly.