2023-09-30 08:29:44
The artist Bassam Koussa did not participate in the 2023 Ramadan race, and he has generally been less involved in his dramatic participation in recent years. But here he returns to us in the series “Al-Gharib” on the Shahid platform, accompanied by artist Farah Bseiso, who was also absent from the drama for a long time, before she recently participated in the movie “Abdul Rahman’s Daughters.”
Watching Bassam Koussa and Farah Bseiso, who appear on screen in general, and in the Ramadan races in particular in the series “Al-Gharib”, reminds us of the beauty and fluidity of raw acting, which is devoid of showiness, emotions, and even provocations.
The series “Al-Gharib,” written by Lana Al-Jundi and Lubna Haddad, and directed by Sophie Boutros, tells the story of “Youssef,” an honest judge who lives in Damascus with his family, under good family circumstances, and enjoys a good reputation in his professional and family environment. But his life and the life of his family are turned upside down after his son accidentally kills his “friend”, the son of a senior official in Syria.
Here Youssef begins his journey, which can be described as a struggle, from a person accustomed to life under the umbrella of the law, to a person fleeing his country to live under the protection of people outlawed.
Bassam Koussa does not play stereotypical characters
As viewers, we are accustomed to Bassam Koussa’s choices of distinctive and remarkable characters, and his skill in presenting complex characters, most notably the character of “Naguib” in “The Four Seasons,” the character of “Saleh Abu Omar” in “The Age of Madness,” and the character of “Badr,” who suffers from autism, in the series “Behind the Sun.” .
The character “Youssef” in the series “Al-Gharib” appeared calm and balanced from the opening scenes of the work, which led us as viewers to contemplate the behavior of the honorable judge when his son told him about a crime he committed by mistake.
Watching Bassam Koussa and Farah Bseiso, who are less likely to appear in the series Al Gharib, reminds us of the beauty of raw acting, devoid of flamboyance, emotions, or even provocations.
At first, “Youssef” did not deviate from what was expected of him as a judge and a lawman in dealing with his son’s crime. He mercifully investigated his son and asked him for the details of the incident, then told him what would happen legally in his case, and led him with the murder weapon to surrender himself, but his son was exposed to an attempted murder. In front of the police station by the family of his friend, the son of the official, in conjunction with the intimidation of his wife and daughter while they were at home, forcing him to flee with his family to Lebanon through his colleague, the lawyer “Farouk,” whose character was played by the actor “Jamal Qabash.”
Here the dramatic transformation takes place in Youssef’s character, as he begins to realize that he has to give up the persona of a representative of the law in order to protect his family. The first concession he made was his acceptance that they, as a family, would carry forged identity cards.
Murder, kidnapping, smuggling, outlawing, and sudden changes in fate are the topics that dramas are dealing with recently. Scenarios that tell ordinary stories do not seem to appeal to the viewer, so it is rare for a work to be presented without at least one of these topics being presented, and in the short works that are produced… Paid platforms, such as “Shahid” and “Netflix,” provide a hearty meal of suspense in every episode to keep the viewer glued to the screen, amazed and entertained at the same time.
Farah Bseiso plays the character of Lama, the wife of Judge Youssef. She gave an excellent performance as we know her, and embodied the character of a loving wife who is confident in her husband’s ability to protect his family. She decided to help him with everything she could upon their arrival in Lebanon, where she sold her gold coins and then… She worked as a cook in the homes of rich people to help him without telling him, but this is not her worst fate at work, but rather the possibility that Al-Beiruti (actor Muhammad Aqeel) will turn her into a criminal in exchange for his protection of the family.
Uneven performance
The character of “Rami,” Ibn Youssef, was played by actor Adam Al-Shami, with a good performance at times and a weak, unconvincing performance at other times. The son did not show real responsibility after what happened to his family because of him. After causing the family to be destroyed in every sense of the word, he steals a sum of money from his father to travel across the sea to Europe. Then his father returns him home and he falls in love with their neighbor in the neighborhood, while he gets involved. His father is involved in money laundering and makes difficult concessions to him in order to protect the family.
In the short works produced by paid platforms, a hearty meal of suspense is provided in each episode to keep the viewer glued to the screen, amazed and entertained.
Sandy Nahhas plays the character “Ola,” the daughter of “Youssef” and “Lama.” She refused to live with the family’s financially poor reality after moving to Lebanon. Then she tried to support the family by searching for work, but her performance was not convincing, and she presented some scenes. With cold facial expressions that were disproportionate to the event, and other scenes in which she was artificially emotional, such as what happened in the kidnapping scene.
As for the actor Saeed Sarhan, who played the character “Khalil,” he excelled in embodying the character of the ruthless tyrant, with an enjoyable performance and without emotional outbursts. He achieved a dramatic transformation in his character when we learned about the story of his mother and his relationship with her, and its impact on the formation of his complex personality.
Resist the difficult fate
Youssef tried to resist his conviction that fights with those outside the legal and moral system would force him to bend the law. After he knew his opponent, he was convinced that he had to flee to another place in order to preserve the family’s life, but fleeing from a hideous fate made him meet even more hideous fates, and this is in some way It was the controversial question of the work, and the door that viewers open in trying to predict the judge’s actions when he is not a judge.
The scenario succeeded in convincing us that anything could happen and that the integrity that Youssef carried as a badge on his chest while working as a judge was paid dearly when he lost the protection of the law.
Social media pioneers raised the issue of the similarity of the events of the series “The Stranger,” to the point of being sometimes quoted, with the American series “Your Honor,” which starred “Bryan Cranston.”
The work received positive feedback from viewers, as social media platforms celebrated Sam Koussa’s brilliance and his outstanding performance in the role, in addition to praising Farah Bseiso Al-Maqla’s recent acting performance, but, there was no mention of the rest of the cast.
A final note on the series raised by social media users is that the events of the series are similar, to the point of being sometimes quoted, to the American series “Your Honor,” which starred Bryan Cranston.
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