First Blood: Khaled Mansour’s Debut Follows A Man Ready To Fight For The Fate Of His Dog
In First Blood, John Rambo is a quiet and unassuming Vietnam war veteran who is pushed to take extreme measures when he’s bullied by a small town sheriff. Hassan (Essam Omar) is similarly provoked into action by an obnoxious landlord in Khaled Mansour’s tough yet compassionate feature debut Seeking Haven For Mr. Rambo, an intriguing study of different kinds of self-interested masculinity that curses its carriers to miss out on the world around them.
For months, Hassan and his mother (Samaa Ibrahim) have resisted eviction by their landlord Karem (Ahmed Bahaa), the almost cartoonishly villainous owner of the building. Inheriting the property, Karem has dispensed with the kindness his father once showed on the longtime residents and wants them out so he can expand his mechanic business. But the apartment is the home Hassan and his mother grew up in, and they have a valid contract to stay there, no matter Karem’s ambitions. But the situation escalates when, during a fracas, Hassan’s beloved pooch Rambo bites Karem where the sun doesn’t shine to protect his master. Karem demands exacting revenge on the dog himself, forcing Hassan to flee and protect his canine companion all while trying to keep a roof over his and his mother’s head.
The ensuing journey sends Hassan tumbling down a rabbit hole into the past. As he seeks a temporary home for Rambo, he visits his estranged uncle, who is also his last known tie to Hassan’s father who abandoned the family when he was a child. Hassan also reaches out to Asmaa (Rakeen Saad), a former romantic interest. An unresolved past flickers between them even as she’s moved on with a new fiancé. But her delight at seeing her old friend and his ease in her presence emanates through their easy warmth. It’s in these stops that Hassan is forced to grapple with the choices he’s made. There’s an unspoken implication that his self-centeredness closed off a potential future with Asmaa who notes, even now, his difficulty in opening up. And it could be argued that Hasaan during this moment of crisis has abandoned his mother to deal with the volatile Karem, perhaps not unlike his own father did before.
The cute, attentive Rambo puts on an endearing face on the picture, but it’s an adroit misdirect by the filmmakers. The screenplay by Mansour and Mohamed El-Hosseiny is much grittier than expected. Seeking Haven For Mr Rambo grapples with how men exercise their responsibilities and commitments to family — or don’t. It speaks volumes that Karem’s young son, who hangs about the garage, is rarely addressed, but witnesses how his father moves with anger and violence through the world around him. Mansour and El-Hossieny, much like the taciturn Hassan, don’t overtly explicate these themes, but when guns are brandished and blood is eventually shed, it’s the inevitable conclusion to the cascading decisions of men who have not yet grown up.
Yet, you root for Hassan as, even in his imperfections, his heart means well and one hopes that even as he comes to his lessons the hard way, he will find a meaningful path forward. The gorgeous, airy lensing by cinematographer Ahmed Tarek Bayoumi gives space to Hassan, and the gentle, grounded performances by Omar and Saad in which optimism can grow even in the worst emotional and physical brutality.
From underground dog fights to posh architecture offices, Hassan traverses the breadth of life in Cairo. But the most symbolic moment is found during a rare moment of repose for Hassan as he spends the night in Asmaa’s cafe. With patience and care he fixes a malfunctioning, flickering refrigerator. Perhaps not realizing it, he does so with an attention and confidence that he can’t seem to grasp in the unthinkable situation he finds himself in trying to save his dog, his own skin, and his apartment. But for one fleeting moment, it seems possible he might just get there.
Reviewed on December 11th at the 2024 Red Sea International Film Festival (4th edition). 102 mins.
★★★½/☆☆☆☆☆
