Among the remarkable Syrian films which have recently been wrapped up, is al Risalah al Akhirah (The Last Message) directed by Basel al Khatib who debuts in cinema direction after shooting a number of unique TV series.
Costarring in the film are Ayman Zeidan, Norman Asaad, Talhat Hamdi and others. The script was written by Qamar al Zaman Aloush, basing on Nabil Sulaiman’s novel Atyaf al Arsh (The Visions of The Throne).
The film takes place in a Syrian village in the forties under the French mandate and the influence of the authoritative people with the inhabitants facing all sorts of fears, poverty and despair. All of a sudden one of the village’s people, al Taher al Tuwaibi, appears after a long sabbatical in order to change the life of his people, liquidate the oppressive persons and spread justice according to his own conception.
Taher establishes an independent entity based on power and money and grows gradually until he faces acute miserable turns. In the end he discovers the truth that the whole humanity history is nothing but ongoing and incomplete attempts to achieve justice.
In most of the scenes and the exaggerated screenshots of his characters, Khatib masked the set limiting himself with a dark backdrop and strong lighting to highlight the main character in the film which is the human being and his reaction with his counterpart and the hero in particular.
The director sought to write his last message on a dark page with all the scenes colored between gray, deep black and blue. This breathtaking cordon has come as a result of the miserable political and social situation (Syria under the French mandate and influence of authoritative people) -- Albawaba.com
