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Once Upon a Time in Gaza

Play trailer Poster for Once Upon a Time in Gaza 2025 1h 30m Drama Crime Mystery & Thriller Play Trailer Watchlist
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92% Tomatometer 13 Reviews Popcornmeter Fewer than 50 Ratings
Gaza, 2007. Yahya, a young student, forges a friendship with Osama, a charismatic restaurant owner with a big heart. Together, they start peddling drugs while delivering falafel sandwiches, but they are soon forced to grapple with a corrupt cop and his oversized ego....

Critics Reviews

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Siddhant Adlakha Variety Jul 8
Its self-reflexive, bifurcated story — about using cinematic images to create a revolution — ends up ironically flaccid. Go to Full Review Yasmine Kandil Little White Lies May 27
The melodrama derives from rich cultural specificity that lends itself well to this tale of love, loss, and unrest. Go to Full Review Ben Kenigsberg RogerEbert.com May 21
Structurally, “Once Upon a Time in Gaza” is pretty rough (the two halves aren’t tied together well), but the lurching, unpredictable nature of the narrative is of a piece with the movie’s subject and setting. Go to Full Review Nicolás Medina Peliplat Dec 4
7/10
"What the Nasser brothers are doing is reviving the Gazan imagination, not as a means of escape, but as a space for criticism, memory, and subversion." [Full review in Spanish] Go to Full Review Panos Kotzathanasis Asian Movie Pulse Nov 24
6.5
Although some minor inconsistencies in the script are present, "Once Upon a Time in Gaza" ultimately stands as an intelligent, sharply humorous, and deeply engaging work. Go to Full Review Sarah Manvel In Their Own League Jun 6
A good movie, which makes clever use of its tropes to build to a completely unpredicted ending. It’s an incredible reminder of what hope can do. Go to Full Review Read all reviews
Once Upon a Time in Gaza

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Cast & Crew

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Tarzan Nasser

Director

Arab Nasser

Director

Nader Abd Alhay

Yahya

Ramzi Maqdisi

Abou Sami

Majd Eid

Osama

Issaq Elias

Le réalisateur
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Once Upon a Time in Gaza

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Movie Info

Synopsis Gaza, 2007. Yahya, a young student, forges a friendship with Osama, a charismatic restaurant owner with a big heart. Together, they start peddling drugs while delivering falafel sandwiches, but they are soon forced to grapple with a corrupt cop and his oversized ego....
Director
Tarzan Nasser, Arab Nasser
Producer
Rani Massalha, Muriel Merlin, Marie Legrand
Screenwriter
Tarzan Nasser, Arab Nasser
Production Co
Jordan Pioneers, Riva Film, Made in Palestine Project , Ukbar Filmes, Les Films du Tambour
Genre
Drama, Crime, Mystery & Thriller
Original Language
Arabic
Runtime
1h 30m