Ford Transit

The white Ford vans driving around all over Palestine once belonged to the Israeli army, which gave them to former collaborators as a source of income after the Oslo Accords. Soon, they were sold and converted to taxis, and today there are thousands of these vans. Director Hany Abu-Assad shows the day-to-day reality of a cab driver named Rajai and his passengers in Ramallah and Jerusalem, along roadblocks and shortcuts. The passengers make up a heterogeneous company with divergent opinions about the situation in Palestine and views on the conflict with Israel. Local celebrities such as politician Hanna Ashrawi and filmmaker B.Z. Goldberg (Promises) make use of Rajai’s van as well. With Rajai and his passengers, the film meanders along some of the determining elements of his life, so we not only gain insight into this young man’s character and background, but also into the complex situation in the region. We hear about Rajai’s family, his smuggling of illegal CDs, his views on the political situation and possible solutions for it, his dream of a future abroad, and his fascination with and even appreciation for suicide bombers. But above all, we sense his frustration with the life of a cab driver. Like everywhere in the world, this mainly consists of finding customers before they take someone else’s taxi. (International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam)