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The Cave

Play trailer Poster for The Cave PG-13 2019 1h 35m Documentary Play Trailer Watchlist
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97% Tomatometer 64 Reviews 83% Popcornmeter 50+ Ratings
As Syria is brutally ravaged by war, a fearless 30-year-old aspiring pediatrician and her team work tirelessly to save lives in a secret makeshift hospital located underneath the war-torn city.
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The Cave

The Cave

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Critics Consensus

A hard-hitting documentary with imagery as powerful as its message, The Cave poses heartbreakingly urgent questions -- and leaves them for the viewer to answer.

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Critics Reviews

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John Anderson America Magazine The grace of someone like Dr. Ballour and her colleagues is unquestioned, endlessly valuable and deserving of all the recognition in the world. What it is not is banal. Which is what "The Cave" comes dangerously close to making it. Jan 12, 2020 Full Review Kevin Maher Times (UK) It's still profoundly effective film-making, but feels less true. Rated: 4/5 Dec 9, 2019 Full Review Cath Clarke Guardian Like Ballour, it has a purpose: to focus the world's attention on the suffering of Syrian people. Rated: 4/5 Dec 6, 2019 Full Review Erick Estrada Cinegarage The Cave is also a manifestation of the pessimism that emerged from the rubble of a devastated Siria. [Full review in Spanish] Jul 19, 2023 Full Review Daniel Howat Next Best Picture The Cave gives a glimpse into the humanity that can be too easily overlooked. It also reminds us of the hope that they’re able to find even in the midst of tragedy. It’s painful, necessary, and beautifully captured. Rated: 8/10 May 19, 2022 Full Review Kate Robertson Stuff.co.nz It won't be an easy watch, but you'll be glad you did. Jun 12, 2021 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

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Bill Your review will help others decide whether to watch. Rated 5 out of 5 stars 02/20/21 Full Review Audience Member 4.5 out of 5 stars ⭐⭐⭐⭐1/2 Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars 02/26/23 Full Review dave d If you consider yourself knowledgable about Syria and the civil war that has torn through the nation then you are certainly familiar with some of the documentaries that have come out with just harrowing footage. 'The Cave' is no exception. It's a hard and vivid watch. You wish it wasn't real. You wonder why a great nation like the US would allow these things to go on. Yet where do we go from here? Syrian film director Feras Fayyad has cobbled together a fantastic companion piece to his Oscar nominated 'Last Men in Aleppo'. What really strikes me is the treatment of women even during this crisis. We have a husband of a patient who is upset that a woman runs the hospital and even when a woman does the cooking of food that likely isn't fresh the men STILL complain. Beggars apparently CAN be choosers. The film profiles Amani Ballour, the aforementioned doc running the makeshift hospital. Look up hero in the dictionary and there's a picture of her. Final Score: 7.7/10 Rated 4 out of 5 stars 03/31/23 Full Review wayne m The Cave is an extremely important and vital documentary about the ongoing situation in war torn Syria. It's a very concise and extremely well made film about the area of Ghouta near Damascus that was a rebel stronghold against the Syrian regime. For many years it was bombed constantly by the regime with the support of Russian fighter planes. In this environment existed 'The Cave', an underground hospital to care for the countless wounded. The main doctor is Amani Ballour. Hers is a profile in courage. Not just her daily battle to save lives but also the battle in being a women in a charge in a patriarchal society. This film is often distressing to watch, but it is a great document of this unbearable suffering. Rated 4 out of 5 stars 03/31/23 Full Review Audience Member Oscar nominated documentary highlights a female doctor during the Syrian civil war. It is very hard to watch knowing there is no good ending to it. Rated 5 out of 5 stars 02/26/23 Full Review Audience Member This is the latest film by Syrian filmmaker Feras Fayyad, who made Last Men in Aleppo, the gripping film about the White Helmets, the men who risked their lives to rescue civilians from bombing-related rubble. This documentary follows Dr. Amani, a pediatrician and managing physician of the Cave, an underground hospital in a city near Damascus, as she struggles to keep her hospital running. Food, medicine, and medical supplies are dwindling (one of the surgeons plays classical music on his phone and asks his patients to relax during surgery because of the lack of anesthesia), and the increasing risk of chemical weapons forces them to conduct their surgeries below the ground. It is a powerful and inspiring story of a woman and her many female colleagues who fight against the Russian army as well as prejudice from their own patriarchal culture to ensure that as many people as possible, a large number who are children, can be healed. While the film is a bit difficult to follow sometimes, the images are striking; like For Sama, which has a similar subject matter, the visuals of the bombings and the scarred city are horrifying. There are many shots of children who have been damaged by bombings, chemical attacks, and loss of their parents. Big thumbs up for an important film that shows us the work of true heroines saving lives against great odds and, also like For Sama, presents important questions about the choices we make. Rated 4 out of 5 stars 02/20/23 Full Review Read all reviews
The Cave

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Cast & Crew

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Movie Info

Synopsis As Syria is brutally ravaged by war, a fearless 30-year-old aspiring pediatrician and her team work tirelessly to save lives in a secret makeshift hospital located underneath the war-torn city.
Director
Feras Fayyad
Producer
Kirstine Barfod, Sigrid Jonsson Dyekjær
Screenwriter
Feras Fayyad, Alisar Hasan
Production Co
Danish Documentary Production Aps
Rating
PG-13 (Disturbing War-Related Content)
Genre
Documentary
Original Language
Arabic
Release Date (Streaming)
Jan 14, 2020
Box Office (Gross USA)
$60.9K
Runtime
1h 35m
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