User reviews

The Cave is not a didactic or information-driven documentary. It's an actively observational grounding of the audience into a truth you have to see to believe-a spiritual appeal to the senses. For every bomb we see almost hit us, we are spared a screen full of text. For every infant hand we see reaching up for the doctor's stethoscope amidst the chaos following a blast, we are spared a formal, scripted interview sit-down or sound bite. When we see a gassed group of children brought to The Cave to die and wrapped in tablecloths because there are no replacements available for their chemically-stained clothes, we are diverted away from more standard informative fare that attempts to describe the indescribable.

This is not about the state of the Syrian war. This IS the Syrian war, enclosed from both ends, with the relentless reverberations of warplanes flying above ground and the normalization of a day-to-day constant of fear.

Most impactful was the perspective of the pediatrician (the subject of the film). Through clinical training, physicians grow a callus for their patients. Intentionally so, to remain calm, collected, rational. But also unintentionally, to subconsciously remove themselves from the trauma children experience in front of them on a daily basis. Seeing Dr. Amani crack, it destroyed me. Locking herself in the room and weeping, waiting for the next wave, not knowing what's going to come next. "Come home," her father insists on voicemail. But the clinic depends on her. It would be nothing without her. We're reminded that heroes are human and vulnerable.

I felt physically beaten down leaving the theater. I had to play my "It's going to be ok" playlist. I am not sure if it will, but if Amani can help these children find some momentary faith, I think we can all do better.

It's a great documentary with so many human messages from the start.

Its production values are very good and it's a well-made one.

Sacrificing, danger, fear, war, politics, life and death are among the few themes that you can look through this documentary with the film-maker.

There was another reason that makes watching this documentary hard for me, besides its disturbing imagery which was the fact that my corrupt government is behind all of these and is supporting Bashar al-Assad and its allies to crush Syrian people like this... It's very hard for me to even think about this!

We have so many problems in Iran with our government and they're doing these horrible activities abroad also.

Hope all we can live in a world without these dictators and these totalitarian governments someday...

A raw, brutal testimony of those that were left behind. The cinematography is outstanding. The sound is chilling. A portrait of humankind at both its worst and best. Certainly one of the hardest things I've ever watched, yet doing so might be our only chance to show respect for the heroic healthcare professionals and civilians depicted. It shook me to my core.

Feras Feyyad's sobering Documentary THE CAVE begins with one of the most striking opening shots of any recent film. A city sits quietly for several moments. And, then a missile comes flying seemingly out of nowhere and explodes. And, then another. And, then another. But, this isn't some Michael Bay Armageddon fantasy - it's a war torn city. And, the 'war' isn't being waged by some invading enemy -- but, by the nation's own leader.

The city is in a province of Syria that was attacked by it's evil tyrant Bashar al-Assad (abetted by Putin's Russia). But, THE CAVE isn't a political film. Instead, its focus isn't on the war on the ground, but by a tunnel burrowed beneath the city of Ghouta. Within those tunnels sits a hospital run by a hundred or so volunteers who chose to stay and help the victims of the constant bombardment rather than flee (or, at the very least, remain with their friends and families). The head of the hospital is Dr. Amani Ballour and unmarried 30ish woman. Beyond the enormous task of running a subterranean medical facility during a time of war, Amani has to assert herself in a patriarchal society which takes a dim view of 'working women' --- even her own family voices displeasure.

Feyyad and his team do laudable work under the circumstances. Feyyad balances the hospital and war horrors with the personal lives of Amani and her personnel. He doesn't dwell on the graphic details, but, doesn't shy away either (fair warning). At any moment a bomb can strike in the city and the entire facility becomes a full on E.R. (the tunnel also functions as a de facto bomb shelter for many). But, during the quieter moments, we see the doctors and laymen go about the mundane details like feeding the crew and trying to get the internet to function so as to keep open channels to the world above. The only real demerit is for Matthew Herbert's overly dramatic musical score. The material not only doesn't lend itself to such an approach, but, with all the sounds of battle and hospital work all around it isn't required.

THE CAVE certainly isn't easy viewing, but, it's an essential piece of filmmaking with a subject in Amani that is worth all the attention coming to her. A heroine.

While the hospital personnel at The Cave learn to differentiate by sound the different types of warplanes flying overhead and their country of origin for survival, it was the heart-wrenching sound of another stretcher rolling into the hospital while making the floor and walls shake with the weight of a human being fighting for his life that I dreaded the most during my time watching the documentary. As a viewer I was struggling between wondering how much more of the reality presented to me I could take and wanting to reach through the screen and help them. That palpable was their urgency. It is the unfiltered questions coming out of Dr. Amani's own soul during her moments of most abatement and stress like "Is God really watching?" that fall like a bomb and shake the foundations of her own reality and the morals and practices of the culture around her. The Cave is a masterclass in both documentary filmmaking and in humanity.

I urge you to see this great, great film. Despite the harrowing danger, the devastating destruction, this is one of the most uplifting films I've seen in years.

Should be rated 12+ This is a paradigm of what war can do. What courage and persistence can achieve. Well brought out to us the ignorant mass.....Well directed and edited!

Thank you, National Geographic for making this masterpiece. Everybody should see the suggles of this hospital and community. This is also a very powerful anti-war and anti-chemical weapon documentary. The hospital team deserve awards for their bravery. The filming makes you feel like you are in the room with them and the shots over Syria as the bombs fall are Devastating. This movie makes you also hate Assad and Russia and feel love for the people of Syria and the doctors and nurses of the cave. Every politician who is deciding their country's path in Syria should see this.

Like a book I couldn't put down. Watched it through to the end and was exhausted, exhilarated and left with a feeling that how on earth has humanity come to this.

I feel powerless. Nothing I can give or do will change this. I look at the world leaders and despair.

Film wise, what a wonderful job the crew did in producing such an outstanding film. I thought virtually everything about it was just right. The characters, the camera work, the sound and editing were mostly spot on.

Thank you.

What a beautiful soul, Amani. Her calm ways, altruism and empathy, her courage and humanity, so pure and incredibly powerful. She radiates that spiritual depth which I suppose was once the starting point of all huge religions before they became corrupted along the way. To me, this is what God is about: people like Amani and her wonderful team, dr. Salim and the rest. If we are to survive as a species, we'll be needing people like them. They are literally the light in the tunnel.

And to the makers of the documentary: incredible job. A palpable claustrophobia like you feel when watching Das Boot, only here it's the real thing.

This poignant, important documentary is one of the most important pieces of filmmaking of our time. Everybody should be made to watch this as it depicts the atrocities that man is capable of. Set in a Syrian hospital during the ongoing humanitarian crisis of the Bashar regime, Dr. Amani and her team battle relentlessly in their bid to help the war injured. Under immense pressure and with little medical necessities, this team are true heroes. This documentary will have you crying, laughing and smiling throughout this true rollercoaster of emotions. The work of these people are admirable to remain in hell and continue to help, whilst others flee. Dr Amani faces not only the struggles of war and separation from family but also societies norms in a antiquated male heirachy where women are seen as inferior.

Nominated for Best Documentary Feature at the last Academy Awards, The Cave is another hard-hitting account of the humanitarian crisis created in the wake of Syrian Civil War, and concerns a group of doctors as they try to save civilian lives with limited medical resources in an underground makeshift hospital.

Directed by Feras Fayyad, his documentary offers ample evidence of war crimes committed by Bashar Regime against its own citizens, including use of chemical weapons, but the presentation isn't up to the mark. Several segments look as if they were rehearsed before filming, and are lacking the spontaneity that makes them click.

Amidst the daily airstrikes & bombings, it also sheds light on the systemic sexism as even in an environment where death lurks above, a man feels an obligation to tell a female doctor why she should be at home instead of trying to save human lives. But this element is also later overplayed by the director as if he just wanted to drive a point home.

Like any documentary covering the subject of war, The Cave is graphic, disturbing & uncomfortable. Yet unlike most Syrian documentaries, it has a more polished & refined quality, almost like a feature film shot in an active war zone. It is also way more focused on a single person than the collective effort yet unlike For Sama, it is lacking that raw, personal touch.

Overall, The Cave is as gripping as it is heartbreaking but its impact is rather short lived. There are some tense moments that are expertly documented, including the gas attack that's just soul-shattering, but its narrative lacks a compelling structure and becomes repetitive after a while. Bringing to light the brutal reality of doctors operating in labyrinth of caves beneath a war-torn city, The Cave is worth a shot.