In Jonas Poher Rasmussen’s film, Flee Amin Nawabi’s story personalizes and puts into perspective the plight of refugees, especially those fleeing the Afghan-Soviet War. Through both the stylistic choices made by Rasmussen and the personalized story of Amin Nawabi, Flee offers insights into the disconsolate emotions of refugees as they endure the hardships of trying to feel safe. Over the course of the film, Amin Nawabi is asked to recall his story as a little boy fleeing the war-torn capital of Kabul, in which his circumstances become increasingly strenuous.
Initially, Nawabi comes off as courageous and intelligent, yet as the film progresses, we get more insight into his grit and determination, one that never quits in his pursuit of a better life. In many ways, Nawabi’s experiences give the audience more perspective on the challenges faced by Refugees as we gain insight into his thinking and the emotional turmoil he faces especially as a gay man fleeing Afghanistan. In the turbulent time in which the story takes place, Nawabi’s story also encapsulates his loss of childhood, giving more perspective to the hardships faced by refugees.
Although all parts of Rasmussen’s film evoked my emotions, I’d say I was most moved by the sequence in which Nawabi was fleeing Russia towards Sweden by Boat. In this scene, Nawabi’s mother is seen clearly struggling due to her seasickness. Although the refugees are offered a semblance of hope from an oncoming Norweigan ship, it is later revealed that the crew onboard the ship reported them to the Estonian police, sending them back to Russia to be jailed. Through this sequence of events, we gain insight into how Amin Nawabi feels being a refugee, saying that he feels embarrassed regarding his circumstances. For me, Nawabi’s emotions moved me in the sense that they humanized him even more. Instead of worrying about the potential of escaping Russia, he was more worried about how he was perceived as if he had no agency and was at the mercy of those on that boat. Although it’s easy to describe the quantity of Refugees, it’s incredibly difficult to pay homage to their exigent journies.
The boat scene also left me an impression in the documentary. It kind of shows how we often get our expectations up when we see some hint of hope but consequently reality often hits us hard. I also like how you focused on the analysis of Nawabi’s feelings and how he was more worried about how they looked to the people on the cruise. In a way they were like the animals in a zoo, being observed and taken pictures of.
i agree with the statement that the cruise ship scene moved you emotionally. There was a clear prioritization on what Nawabi was worried about when the smuggling boat came across the cruise ship. Instead of feeling relief that they were found he was given a sense of embarrassment and even felt dehumanized at the situation he was forced into because of his families’ displacement from Afghanistan.