This film is screening on Sunday at the Picture House as part of the Leeds Palestinian Film Festival. It was the first feature film shot by a Palestinian film-maker, Michel Khleifi, in occupied Palestine. Galilee is in what passes for the Israeli state and this drama is set before the 1967 war and the extension of the occupation to the Gaza, West Bank,and territory in Lebanon and Syria.

This a different world from that when the film was produced, just before the First Intifada; and very different from the Zionist campaign of genocide, ethnic cleansing and assaults on neighbouring peoples.

The wedding of the title is of the son of a village Mukhtar [head man]. His village is under martial law and he has to seek permission from the local Military Governor who agrees on condition that he and his aides can attend the ceremony.

Most of the film is taken up with the ceremony; a rich tapestry of Palestinian traditions, both Christian and Muslim. But the tensions caused by the presence of the occupiers exacerbates divisions within the Palestinian community. As the day progresses both personal and communal conflicts reach a climax.

This is a fine piece of film-making, actually shot in villages around Nazareth and the nearby West Bank. The complex narrative not only explores the contradictions of the occupation but also presents the import of the land to Palestinians and the important role that women play in resistance.

There is an excellent article on the film by Ella Shohat in the Middle East Information and Research Project from 1988. And two guests will be illuminating the film after the screening. The film is being projected from a 16mm print in colour, widescreen and with English sub-titles. There is also a review with much of the film’s plot discussed.