The shattering of a childhood dream is symbolic of the cruelly contorted fate of a nation in “Baghdad Messi.” Kurdish-Belgian filmmaker Sahim Omar Kalifa has expanded his much-acclaimed 2012 short into an affecting social drama that unfolds amid violence and fear in Iraq, 2009, during the second Gulf War. Centered on a soccer-mad young boy whose family is forced to move from the capital to a small village after his leg is blown off in a terrorist attack, “Baghdad Messi” has an almost documentary-like realism that makes compelling viewing of Iraq’s international feature Oscar submission.
Born in Iraqi Kurdistan during the Iran-Iraq War (1980-88), Kalifa fled to Belgium in 2001 and has since forged a successful career with Oscar-shortlisted shorts (“Baghdad Messi,” “Bad Hunter”), feature fiction (“Zagros”) and co-directing the 2023 documentary feature “Iraq’s Invisible Beauty,” a portrait of Iraqi photographer Latif al-Ani, whose work since the 1950s has documented Iraq’s architectural landmarks and urban landscape, much of which has now been destroyed.
That destruction is everywhere in “Baghdad Messi.” In an environment that more closely resembles a post-apocalyptic wasteland than a functioning metropolis, 11-year-old Hamoudi (Ahmed Mohammed Abdullah) lives for soccer and idolizes Lionel Messi, the Argentine genius then playing for Spanish giants Barcelona FC. As every kid who’s ever played soccer will understand, Hamoudi and his pals “are” Barcelona in their corner of Baghdad. The boys they play against look to Cristiano Ronaldo — Messi’s only challenger for world’s best player status in 2009 —– and therefore “are” Ronaldo’s Manchester United. It is cruel irony that the official Barcelona team shirt of this era was emblazoned with the UNICEF banner and is worn here by children living in such terrible danger. It’s also notable that when Hamoudi and his pals criticize Ronaldo they call him a “sissy,” whereas in the 2012 short, the insult was “gay.”
During one of these neighborhood games, Hamoudi is caught in the crossfire of an attack on an American security firm called Unity. Witnessing the violence is Hamoudi’s father, Kadhim (Baghdad-born, Germany-based Atheer Adel, “Homeland,” “Nobel” series’), a translator working for Unity. When the family house is set on fire and Kadhim is branded a traitor for having ties with the foreign company, the family moves from Baghdad to the remote home village of Hamoudi’s mother, Salwa (Zahraa Gandour, “The Journey”).
But it is hard to escape everything. Kadhim’s hidden identity as a Shia in Sunni-dominated territory is a source of underlying fear and causes conflict between Salwa and her strong-willed sister, Mirjem (Safa Najem). As the family struggles economically, Kadhim is approached by village boss Osman (Adil Abdolrahman) to scavenge for valuable weapons left scattered in a heavily mined area nearby.
The stark realities of life in a country broken by war form a potent ring around the central story of Hamoudi, whose passion for soccer remains undiminished but who is now excluded from playing even as a goalkeeper by local boys and has difficulty making friends because of his injury. Juvenile actor Abdallah, who lost his left leg at the age of four in a missile attack that killed his father, gives a remarkable performance as the resourceful boy who eventually takes enormous risks to keep at least part of his dream alive.
The warm heart of the film is Hamoudi’s relationship with his guilt-wracked father and a mother who is loving but also pragmatic and outspoken on family matters. “I know you’re a good player. But you won’t be as good as before. And there are a lot of wonderful things in life that you can learn and love,” Salwa says to her son. Understanding that soccer is still everything to the boy and with the European Champions League final between Barcelona and Manchester United rapidly approaching, Kadhim’s paternal love drives him to make a risky return to Baghdad, with Hamoudi in tow, to get their broken television set repaired.
It would have been easy for Kalifi and screenwriter Kobe Van Steenberghe (also a producer) to find a miraculous, against-all-odds solution to the challenges faced by Hamoudi and his family. It is to their credit that the film takes a path that feels honest and real. Though there are some minor missteps in plotting and more tension might have been wrung from a few scenes, “Baghdad Messi” wins through with strongly drawn characters that audiences will connect with and a story that rings true at every turn.
Filmed by cinematographer Anton Mertens (“The Spy,” “Zeevonk”) in an unfussy style that suits the drama ideally, “Baghdad Messi” is set to a fine score by Frederic Vercheval (“Green Border”) that is rich with the sounds of the duduk woodwind and lute-like oud stringed instrument. The film is dedicated to the memory of Hassan Ali Na’aim (2007-2019), a one-legged goalkeeper seen in the closing credits whom Kalifi had originally wanted to play the leading role.
English (US) ·