Through a Documentarian, a Young Man Remembers His Difficult Past

Amin Nawabi in "Flee"
Photo Credit: RottenTomatoes.com

When it comes to the documentary genre, as long as the subject matter is fascinating, the traditional use of interviews and archival footage isn’t an issue.  However, it’s always a memorable experience when documentaries employ different approaches to absorb us in their subjects.  There are documentaries like “Three Identical Strangers” and “The Rescue,” which use some dramatic reenactments to tell their stories, and “Honeyland,” which unfolds like a narrative drama, without the use of any traditional documentary hallmarks.

The genre delivers an innovative entry (this one being animated) with Jonas Poher Rasmussen’s heartrending film, “Flee,” a searing account of one man’s journey to find a better life.

The story follows Amin Nawabi, a young man who lives in Denmark with his boyfriend.  As he’s interviewed about his life, he reveals the events involving him leaving a war-torn Afghanistan with his family to moving to a new country as a refugee.

The vivid, expressive animation gives us a chance to experience Amin’s story in a way that can best be described as unforgettable.  Even though Amin’s narration keeps this movie grounded in the knowledge that it's a documentary, the flashback sequences outside of the framing device of the interview process create a narrative within the movie that highlights Amin’s talent as a storyteller, almost making you forget that this is a documentary and instead making it seem like you’re just sitting next to someone as they tell you their story and confide in you these intimate details.  Through these flashbacks, Amin shows himself to be a chronicler of tremendous impact, immersing us in what he experienced as a refugee in his dangerous travels to find a new life.

 

The movie has the feeling of a therapy session, with the director asking Amin to lay down at the beginning as he prepares to unload the unimaginable experiences that he has had.  The tone of Amin’s voice exemplifies how revealing such details are equal parts liberating and painful.  He seems relaxed as he lays down and puts his trust in the documentarian, but also holds a tone of someone whose past continues to haunt him, an individual whose past has engraved itself in his heart, mind, and bones.  Through his voice, Amin invites the viewer into his memories as we go through these dark years of his young adulthood, with is tone expressing the far-reaching impact that these events have had on him.

Although the director talks here and there with Amin, he also let's Amin tell his story without asking too many questions.  We have lengthy, uninterrupted stretches of Amin speaking about his past and having us venture deeper into what he did to survive the seemingly endless days of traveling, waiting, and traveling some more in order to reach a place of safety.  By allowing Amin these chances to talk for several minutes at a time, this lets his words sink into us as we come to understand the unthinkable circumstances of his former life.

As Amin reveals his past, he provides us with a detailed account of his family and what their life was like before and after they escape from Afghanistan.  We’re given a sense of how much they loved their home and how much it pained them to have to leave.  Following that, we have a gut-wrenching descent into the horrors that he faced as he and his family went through their journey to reach the safety that they needed.  The story then shows what came after, as Amin tries to adjust to a peacefulness that seems alien to him, but does what he can to rebuild his life.  Through these three stages of the narrative, each portion of Amin’s story is given the attention that it deserves so that we can understand everything through which he’s been.

In between these stages, we have the moments of Amin with the documentarian.  These scenes have a sense of comfort to them as we see what’s transitioned several years after the end of Amin’s journey.  This comfort comes from witnessing Amin taking his life day by day, and although he’s still troubled by his past, he’s doing his best to move on and live the life he always wanted with his boyfriend.

While there are bits of news footage used here and there, everything else in the movie is animated.  The animation is used in such a way that has us see Amin’s story through his eyes, and this allows us to feel more connected to his character as he takes us through these years of his life.

When we view Amin’s collection of memories in “Flee,” it’s as if we’re watching someone live, die, and then be reborn.

Grade: A