{{Infobox film | name = Forget Baghdad: Jews and Arabs – The Iraqi Connection | image = | alt = | caption = | director = Samir | producer = Samir<br/>Gerd Haag<br/>Karin Koch | writer = Samir | starring = Shimon Ballas<br/>Moshe Houri | music = Rabih Abou-Khalil | cinematography = Nurit Aviv<br/>Philippe Bellaiche | editing = Samir<br/>Nina Schneider | studio = Dschoint Ventschr Filmproduktion AG | distributor = Arab Film Distribution | released = {{Film date|2002|11|21|Switzerland|2003|03|13|Germany}} | runtime = | country = Germany<br/>Switzerland | language = English<br/>Arabic<br/>Hebrew | budget = | gross = }} '''''Forget Baghdad: Jews and Arabs – The Iraqi Connection''''' is a 2002 documentary film about the Mizrahim, or Jewish community of Iraq. It was written and directed by Samir<!--Note: he does not use his last name.-->, an Iraqi born in Baghdad in 1955 and living since 1961 in Switzerland.
The film focuses on five expatriate Iraqi Jews, most living in Israel: Shimon Ballas, Moshe (Moussa) Houri, Sami Michael, Samir Naqqash, and Ella Habiba Shohat.
The film's music is by Rabih Abou-Khalil. It was produced by Karin Koch and Samir and edited by Nina Schneider and Samir. The directors of photography were Nurith Aviv and Philippe Bellaiche.
The film was a coproduction between TagTraum Cologne, Gerd Haag, SF DRS, Teleclub, and Dschoint Ventschr Filmproduktion. It is 112 minutes in length.
The DVD, which is distributed by Arab Film Distribution, comes with a 30-minute "Making of the film" featurette. The DVD has multiple audio tracks and subtitles in English, German, French, Arabic, Hebrew, Italian, and Spanish.
==Reception== <!--by critic's name--> * ''A fascinating but disorganized documentary.''<br>– Stephen Holden, ''The New York Times'', December 4, 2003<ref>''[https://www.nytimes.com/movie/review?res=9E01E0D8173DF936A35751C1A9659C8B63 Forget Baghdad (2002) – Film Review; Born in Iraq, Living in Israel, Pondering Issues of Identity]'', by Stephen Holden, 12/5/03, at the New York Times web (nytimes.com)</ref> * ''Grainy video and gimmicky editing give this documentary an amateurish feel, but Samir's charming, rueful interlocutors shine through.''<br>– Anya Kamenetz, ''Village Voice'', December 2, 2003<ref>''[https://web.archive.org/web/20080915194930/http://www.villagevoice.com/2004-02-17/film/film/ Film: Forget Baghdad, Directed by Samir]'', by Anya Kamenetz, Village Voice, 12/2/03</ref> * ''Samir's presentation is uninspired and too long. It's outdated, too.''<br>– V.A. Musetto, ''New York Post'', December 5, 2003<ref>''[https://nypost.com/2003/12/05/operation-iraqi-boredom/ Operation Iraqi Boredom]'', by V.A. Musetto, New York Post, 12/5/03</ref> * ''Explores identity, but words get in the way.''<br>– Michael O'Sullivan, ''The Washington Post'', April 16, 2004<ref>''[https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2004/04/16/AR2005033116588.html Film Explores Identity, But Words Get in the Way]'', by Michael O'Sullivan, Washington Post, 4/16/04</ref> * ''Timely and thought-provoking, if a bit rambling.''<br>– Deborah Young, ''Variety'', December 23, 2003<ref>''[https://variety.com/2002/film/reviews/forget-baghdad-jews-and-arabs-the-iraqi-connection-1200546840/ Review: ‘Forget Baghdad — Jews and Arabs: The Iraqi Connection’]'', by Deborah Young, Variety, 12/23/03</ref>
==See also== *History of the Jews in Iraq
==External links== *{{Official website|http://www.forgetbaghdad.net/}} *{{IMDb title|0329094}} *{{Rotten-tomatoes|forget_baghdad}}
===References=== <references/>
{{DEFAULTSORT:Forget Baghdad: Jews and Arabs - The Iraqi Connection}} Category:2002 films Category:German documentary films Category:History of Baghdad Category:Jewish Iraqi history Category:Documentary films about Jews and Judaism in Asia Category:2002 documentary films Category:Swiss documentary films Category:2002 English-language films Category:2002 Arabic-language films Category:2002 Hebrew-language films Category:2002 multilingual films Category:German multilingual films Category:Swiss multilingual films Category:2002 German films Category:English-language documentary films Category:2002 Swiss films
{{Baghdad-stub}} {{Jewish-documentary-film-stub}} {{Jewish-hist-stub}} {{Iraq-hist-stub}}