Rotten Tomatoes
Cancel Movies Tv shows FanStore News Showtimes

Sand Storm

Play trailer Poster for Sand Storm Released Sep 28, 2016 1h 27m Drama Play Trailer Watchlist
Watchlist Tomatometer Popcornmeter
93% Tomatometer 42 Reviews 79% Popcornmeter 250+ Ratings
In Southern Israel, a teen's (Lamis Ammar) forbidden love affair challenges the traditions of her Bedouin mother and father.
Sand Storm

What to Know

Critics Consensus

Sand Storm marks an impressive first feature for debuting writer-director Elite Zexer that offers a perceptive -- and crucial -- look at patriarchal traditions.

Read Critics Reviews

Critics Reviews

View All (42) Critics Reviews
Alexandra Heller-Nicholas The Blue Lenses There is a grim sense of inevitability that runs through Sand Storm, yet Jalila's incandescent spirit contains the hope that the old ways are soon to be a thing of the past. Aug 25, 2018 Full Review J. R. Jones Chicago Reader The movie is like a study in prisoner psychology. Nov 10, 2016 Full Review Kenneth Turan Los Angeles Times It's set in the heart of the desert, but the disturbances of the quietly impressive "Sand Storm" rage not in the natural world but in the intimate corners of the human heart. Oct 6, 2016 Full Review David Bax Battleship Pretension As things progress, it begins to seem that such anger is partially what Zexer aims to provoke. And, from there, the empathy follows... Jan 5, 2021 Full Review Fernanda Solórzano Letras Libres It's not a naive story... It's the story of a dilemma and how a final decision is not always the most gratifying, but it's the one that will have significant repercussions in the long run. [Full Review in Spanish] May 8, 2020 Full Review Jorge Ignacio Castillo The Canadian Crew Sand Storm brings attention to the limited opportunities women have in this environment and hints at the resilience of patriarchal tradition. Rated: 3/5 Jan 28, 2020 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

View All (21) audience reviews
Terry M A dreary, sad story of a stupid family who's father is bound by religious dogma. Rated 1.5 out of 5 stars 10/19/23 Full Review Audience Member I don't think a movie has ever evoked such visceral feelings of anger in me. It is a strong film, but I cannot give it 5 stars on principle. I was so disappointed in the outcome for Layla, but so proud of Jalila all the same. The writers had me very frustrated with Jalila in the beginning, and Suliman seemed endearing. But true character shines through in the face of hard decisions. Not sure I would watch again - I found the ending so deeply disappointing. Guess that's the whole point. Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 01/14/23 Full Review georgan g Hard to watch. Good acting that shows the truth about patriarchal societies. Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 03/31/23 Full Review Audience Member It took me a lot to care for what has happening for most of the movie and the movie is not that long. Drags like a dead mule. I am the one to blame for trying to watch this "art" films that think showing others culture for 1 hour and a half is enough. Rated 1.5 out of 5 stars 02/27/23 Full Review Audience Member Women must build their own way of life instead of being a serf by men. Layla is a strong girl like her mother. Unfortunately, Layla's faith not as good as her guts. A movie with a deeper meaning of a woman psychologically in a world of masculine supervisor. Polygamy sometimes can be offending for women because women have heartburning in their personalities. Rated 4 out of 5 stars 02/11/23 Full Review Rolando R Slow. A sick culture that should disappear. Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars 05/31/20 Full Review Read all reviews
Sand Storm

My Rating

Read More Read Less POST RATING WRITE A REVIEW EDIT REVIEW

Cast & Crew

Gett: The Trial of Viviane Amsalem 100% 81% Gett: The Trial of Viviane Amsalem Watchlist Or 73% 75% Or Watchlist Fill the Void 89% 69% Fill the Void Watchlist Layla M. 100% 77% Layla M. Watchlist Discover more movies and TV shows. View More

Movie Info

Synopsis In Southern Israel, a teen's (Lamis Ammar) forbidden love affair challenges the traditions of her Bedouin mother and father.
Director
Elite Zexer
Screenwriter
Elite Zexer
Distributor
Kino Lorber
Genre
Drama
Original Language
Arabic
Release Date (Theaters)
Sep 28, 2016, Limited
Release Date (Streaming)
Apr 4, 2017
Box Office (Gross USA)
$64.0K
Runtime
1h 27m