I've heard there's a problem ...
Question: I've heard there's a problem with one of this year's Oscar-nominated foreign films but I don't know what it's all about. Can you tell me?
Answer: The controversy is with Paradise Now, a film that explores the complicated reasons that lead two young Palestinian men to become suicide bombers, and the problem hinges on the ongoing geopolitical tinderbox that is the Middle East. Foreign-language-film nominees are identified not by the names of the producer(s) or director(s) but by the country of origin. Paradise Now was submitted as the official nomination from Palestine, which has created a brouhaha because — as various Israeli spokespeople have pointed out — Palestine isn't internationally recognized as a country. Although the Academy's website currently (three days prior to the televised awards ceremony) lists the film as being from Palestine, an Academy spokesperson says it will be identified on air as being from the Palestinian Territories.
