"It is part of morality not to be at home in one's home." - Edward Said
Edward Said’s life’s work was principally about his own identity and search for a place to belong. As an author of 22 books, a regular columnist and newspaper contributor, and a music critic, Said never considered his life to be all that extraordinary.
Born into a Christian household in Jerusalem, Said would spend the majority of his 67 years suspended across borders with no place to call his home. He was raised in Cairo with a Western education, granted to him in large part by his father, an American citizen. Living an unsettled life would prove to be the inspiration for Said’s writing, forever echoing the journey of both Palestinians and Israelis looking for home and peace.
Presented by Icarus Films in a two-disc set of two feature documentaries, Out of Place and The Last Interview illustrate Said’s life in as complete a form as possible. The documentaries invoke the steps walked by Said through his life, telling his stories in his own words and in the words of those closest to him.
Out of Place: Memories of Edward Said borrows its name from Said’s memoir. Directed by Sato Makoto, the documentary takes a slow and gradual look through the subject’s life often with painstaking pacing. Makoto celebrates the importance of Said’s work and his love for music, highlighting his various roles and relationships.
Makoto places the documentary, which would be the director's last film before his death in 2007, between the Middle East and New York City, darting back between the two places to give the viewer a sense of the lack of belonging Said must have felt. While the film is certainly informative and thorough, it also has moments that are often quite bland. Makoto favours long shots, choosing to sit staring at photographs for long stretches and sweeping across relatively normal landscapes with slow relish.
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