Thursday, June 2, 2016

Movie Review: A Hologram for a King


The story of self discovery in a strange and beautiful land, "AHologram for the King" is based on the award winning book of the same name by acclaimed author Dave Eggers. 

An actor and filmmaker with a number of awards to his name himself, Tom Hanks stars as Alan Clay, a broke, depressed and freshly divorced man who arrives in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia to close what he hopes to be the deal of a lifetime. 

His mission is to sell a state-of-the-art holographic teleconferencing system to the King of Saudi Arabia. Finding himself in a strange land with unfamiliar customs, Alan struggles to get a sense of how things operate in the beautiful yet strange city. 

At first, I wasn't sure how to classify the film, until the very end and it was only then that I realized that the film falls under the group of movies, such as: "Lost in Translation" and yes, even Hank's "The Terminal". 

I must applaud director Tom Tykwer who created beautiful and seamless transitions in scenes as well as being able to execute effective flashbacks to further enchance the narration of the story. 


As usual, Tom Hanks delivers a powerful and endearing performance, and his fellow actors are worth praising as well. Providing the comedic relief in the film is Alan's guide (chauffeur) Yousef, played by Alexander Black. 

During Alan's stay in the city, he also meets the beautiful and mysterious surgeon, Zara Hakem, played by London born actress Sarita Choundry, from the Emmy-award winning series "Homeland". 

The film is described as "the story of a man who stumbles upon an emotional and spiritual oasis after wandering in the dessert." -and I couldn't agree more. Despite the problems, hurts and wounds that Alan left behind in the US, he is able to find a new drive, he was able to find hope in a strange and beautiful dessert. 

A refreshing film, beautifully crafted with seamless transitions and flawless editing. You don't know what it's really about until the very end. The change in setting is very much welcome, as it brings the viewer to the beautiful and mysterious kingdom of Saudi Arabia. It's different customs, interesting people and beautiful scenic landscapes. 

Of course, Tom Hanks is a familiar face in an unfamiliar land and that makes the journey more enjoyable. 8/10 ⭐️

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