Flee Review : The gut-wrenching account of an Afghani immigrant in this Oscar nominee is a compulsory watch

STORY: ‘Flee’ is a documentary about an Afghani man who hides his background after fleeing his hometown in the aftermath of the Soviet invasion. After landing in Denmark, his life takes a turn for the better and is now willing to share his tale with the world, with which he has struggled for more than two decades.

REVIEW: Though ‘Flee’ is about an Afghani immigrant, it is primarily concerned with the predicament of refugees throughout the world. Director Jonas Poher Rasmussen portrays a harrowing depiction of the life of migrants via Amin Nawabi, the documentary’s main subject. Flee is a heart-wrenching look at the life of an immigrant from a third-world country who is also part of the LGBT community. The narrative relates to Amin Nawabi's escape from a war-torn Afghanistan, and how European civilization gave him the strength to tell the world the truth that had been haunting him for more than two decades.

Rasmussen uses a unique storytelling approach that incorporates both animation and real action video to tell his narrative. The smooth transitions between live-action videos from war-torn Afghanistan in the late 1980s and an animated Amin Nawabi in Europe (in the present) are so innovative that the end result is both tragic and moving.

With the Taliban's ascension to power and the ongoing conflict in Ukraine, the topic of immigration has resurfaced once again in the international arena, amplifying the importance of this documentary. Full credit to the filmmaker for handling a sensitive yet straightforward subject. Despite the fact that animation takes up a significant portion of the documentary, it is powerful enough to come across as a genuine and honest portrayal of an immigrant.

The first half of ‘Flee’, which depicts Amin's family's everyday existence in Afghanistan, is masterfully handled, and it will undoubtedly bring tears to your eyes as you consider the country's present condition. The narrative style of this documentary likewise defies numerous conventional formats and structures. Amin and his family's journey to Europe is also a metaphor for the difficulties that poor people face while attempting to immigrate to other nations. ‘Flee’ has a lot of compassion and in the end, remains a great narrative of an ordinary man.

This is an important and timely documentary that also serves as a status check on human principles. It's an outstanding and remarkable narrative that's been handled expertly and remains a must-watch. Thanks to Riz Ahmed for picking such a relevant subject.