PARADISE NOW | 2005 | Best friends since childhood, Said (Kais Nashef) and Khaled (Ali Suliman) spend their days toiling at a West Bank auto-repair shop. But they also belong to a Nablus terrorist cell, and in 48 hours, they'll enter Israel as suicide bombers, martyrs for a cause that offers equality in death that can never be achieved in life. That's one way of looking at their situation, but in fact Hany Abu-Assad's film offers many; Said's friend Suha (Lubna Azabal), daughter of a famed martyr, argues for peaceful resistance. Occasional bursts of humor punctuate the chillingly plausible build-up to the pair's date with destiny. And their videotaping of their final messages of martyrdom sets off a comedy of errors. First, neither has any idea how to hold a gun. Then, flubbing lines, they request multiple retakes. After a successful delivery, they learn there's no tape in the camera. The last half of the film finds the sensitive Said questioning his political motivation and quarreling with the committed Khaled. Will they find paradise? Abu-Assad offers no answers, only an attempt at understanding.

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