Gaza

The headlines have shaped the popular conception of Gaza, but, in this well-meaning documentary, Irish film-maker Garry Keane and photographer Andrew McConnell seek to show that there's more than the stand-off between Hamas and Israel to the strip of land measuring 25 by seven miles. However, despite the pair's sometimes self-conscious efforts to depict everyday life, it's abundantly clear that it's impossible to escape the ramifications of the blockade that has existed since 2007. Filming between 2014's 50-day war and 2018's Great March of Return, Keane and McConnell strive to convey the indomitability of the Gazans who try to make a living as fishermen, tailors and cabbies in a territory with limited access to the sea, frequent power cuts and closed borders. We also hear about the changing experience of being a woman in the face of differing kinds of oppression, but Keane and McConnell can only scratch the surface in tackling an intractable and emotive issue that requires in-depth analysis rather than a well-intentioned snapshot.