Borekas is a wonderful short film. At 15 mins long, it manages to pack so much story and subtext which is down to great writing, including silences, direction and editing! Writer and director Salah Saadi short film is about a Palestinian son heading back to Munich. His dad offers to drive him back to the airport but the car breaks down. Whilst they wait for the mechanic to arrive, it provides them with an opportunity to reconnect. They have a heartfelt conversation about the father discovering over a family dinner that he’s the last to know that his son is living with his partner, Christoph in Munich.
This could have been a melodramatic, cliched mess but it is not! All good films short or long begin and end with the writing. The title borekas is a pastry that they share during the heart to heart conversation. It is both tender and striking. I love the different forms of male vulnerability shown on screen.
Borekas will be screened as part of the BFI Flare Shorts: Everything Changes program on 21 March.
