Lamya’s Poem is the story of young refugee Lamya (Millie Davis) after she is given a book of poetry. This book contains literature from the thirteenth century, written by Rumi (Mena Massoud)–and it transports Lamya to Rumi’s time period, literally being able to see him and speak with him about his time as a refugee. Now part of a shared dream world in which monsters lurk in the shadows and death constantly comes knocking, Lamya and Rumi must come together to write a poem with the potential to save Lamya’s life.
Writer-Director Alexander Kronemer uses a juxtaposition of innocence and suffering to tell the story present in Lamya’s Poem. Lamya is an innocent individual who navigates a world full of suffering, death, and despair. She is the silver lining that exists throughout the course of the film, she is what’s used to express innocence and even naivety. In a film full of so many horrible things, this light is essential–as without it the film runs the risk of being overwhelming and far too dark. There’s a simple, but effective balance that exists throughout the course of Lamya’s Poem, and it really does work wonders in regard to the powerful tones that exist in the film.
For all intents and purposes, Lamya’s Poem is a children’s film. It provides a series of life lessons that younger viewers need to learn. Teamwork, love, passion, perseverance, and more play significant roles in Lamya’s Poem, and they work together to create something that truly speaks to younger audiences.
This doesn’t necessarily eliminate the potential for a more mature following–because the reality is that adults often enjoy and find solace in animated children’s films. Films like Encanto and Frozen have attracted mature audiences for years as a result of the mature themes that lie just beneath the surface of the story–but there’s something a bit different about Lamya’s Poem. The primary storyline of attempting to survive war is one that adults will get, and that lends itself to being appealing to those viewers–but the level of innocence and those messages geared toward children are too much for adults. I found myself drifting away from the film, struggling to remain focused because it was just out of reach for me. Twenty years ago, at twelve years old, I think this film would have been perfect for me–but it’s sort of lost on me today.
Length is an issue with Lamya’s Poem. I mentioned that I had some issues focusing throughout the course of the film, and had it been a short film or even a shorter feature-length film, I believe that it would have been able to capture my attention throughout its duration.
There’s no doubt that Lamya’s Poem is a beautiful film about finding yourself and becoming who you were truly meant to be–but it’s missing something. It appeals to younger audiences, and that’s great, but its inability to reach more mature audiences throughout its entirety is damning, and it makes the film as a whole quite challenging. In a children’s film, you want to appeal to children, and that happens–but I wanted something to reach out and touch me (and a wider audience), not just a small piece of the film-watching community.
Written & Directed by Alexander Kronemer.
Starring Millie Davis, Aya Bryn, Raoul Bhaneja, Mena Massoud, Faran Tahir, etc.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐½/10
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