Letters from Baghdad

Letters from Baghdad is a 2016 documentary film about the life and work of Gertrude Bell. It was executive produced by Tilda Swinton, who also provides voiceover work as Bell.[1]

Letters from Baghdad
Film poster
Directed bySabine Krayenbühl
Zeva Oelbaum
Produced byZeva Oelbaum
Starring
Music byPaul Cantelon
CinematographyGary Clarke
Petr Hlinomaz
Edited bySabine Krayenbühl
Distributed byVitagraph Films
Release date
  • October 6, 2016 (2016-10-06) (Beirut)
  • June 2, 2017 (2017-06-02) (United States)
Running time
95 minutes
CountryUnited Kingdom
United States
France
LanguageEnglish
Arabic

Cast

Voice-overs

Talking heads

Reception

Letters from Baghdad received mostly positive reviews from critics. On Metacritic the film has a score of 71% based on reviews from 12 critics.[2]

Jay Weissberg of Variety both complimented the effort and questioned the historical omissions that might taint the portrait of their subject: "Getting Swinton on board doing double duty as voiceover actor and executive producer was a wise marketing decision, while the involvement of Thelma Schoonmaker and Kevin Brownlow assured appropriate attention would be given to the artistic and archival sides. The film also features staged talking heads speaking words sourced from letters and journals. Absent however is any hint of Edward Said’s accusation of Orientalism that’s intermittently colored modern assessments of Bell’s crucial role in the foundation of modern Iraq; also missing are any negative assessments by her Arab contemporaries. Viewers attuned to chronology may object to the way footage from different eras is mixed together — the visuals accompanying a 1918 letter are certainly not from 1918 — yet that kind of criticism could be considered pedantic. The bottom line is that Oelbaum and Krayenbühl have fleshed out a complex, fascinating figure, and after a successful festival career, it’s good to see 'Letters' getting its due via limited release."[3]

References
  1. "'Letters from Baghdad': A Documentary Film With Tilda Swinton As The Voice of Gertrude Bell". Retrieved June 5, 2017.
  2. "'Letters from Baghdad'". Metacritic. Retrieved June 20, 2019.
  3. Weissberg, Jay (June 3, 2017). "'Letters from Baghdad' Review: Documentary Gives Gertrude Bell Her Due". Variety. Retrieved June 5, 2017.
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