Review: #YOLO4REAL (2017)

Directed by: Aiman ​​Hassani | 10 minutes | short film, drama | Actors: Sabri Saddik, Lisa Zweerman, Rachida Iaallala, Ahmed Salah Abdelftah, Armand Rosbak, Kendrick Etmon

Of all the motto of life you should take to heart, “live every day as if it were your last” may be the best. After all, it can simply be over, that earthly existence. Although not everyone gets the chance to look back on their life, if you were given that, it would still be quite unpleasant if you had to realize that you didn’t get everything out of it. With that idea in mind – and stimulated by #yolo (you only live once), which is widely used on social media – filmmaker Aiman ​​Hassani set to work on the short film ‘# YOLO4REAL’, which was produced by Interakt as part of NTR Short! 2017.

“# YOLO4REAL” is about Ahmed in his twenties. In short fragments, often without dialogue and filmed close to the skin, we get a part of his life. He hears that he is terminally ill and receives chemotherapy, although the chance of a cure is not great. Ahmed goes through all the stages of someone dealing with this terrible news. Anger, impotence, grief and ultimately acceptance. We also see how his friends and family react to Ahmed’s fate.

The filmmaker is supported by an excellent actors’ ensemble, which never gives the viewer the feeling of playing a role. It is amazing how Hassani succeeds in creating an emotional bond with the characters despite, or perhaps because of the chosen film form. But what comes even more to the viewer is the message that life moves quickly. Lightning fast. We should – no, we should – be more aware of this and try to act accordingly.