The incredible story of Mosab Hassan Yousef – the son of one of the founders of Hamas who became an informant for the Israeli secret service – is staged almost like an espionage thriller in this taut Sundance-winning doco.
A captivating and emotional story of a Palestinian man turned Israeli spy… An absorbing plotline, and a profoundly sensitive portrait of the individuals at the centre of the story.
Screened as part of NZIFF 2014
The Green Prince 2014
“Nadav Schirman’s terrific double-dealing documentary tells the story of Mosab Yousef, the cherished son of Palestinian firebrand and Hamas co-founder Sheikh Hassan Yousef, who agrees to spy on his father for the Israeli secret service. Mosab insists that he is motivated by disillusion with Hamas, and by a desire to bring peace to the region, although it is clear that he’s also excited by the subterfuge. The deeper he goes the more his loyalties become tangled. He becomes the link between Hamas and Shin Bet, playing both sides off against one another; by turns hapless marionette and would-be puppeteer... Schirman’s film (produced by the team behind Man on Wire and Searching for Sugar Man) is as gripping as any high-concept Hollywood thriller and as psychologically knotty as Greek tragedy. The Green Prince (named after Mosab’s Israeli codename) juggles archive footage with elegant reconstructions, while clearing centre stage for the engrossing testimonials from both Mosab and wily Gonen Ben Yitzhak, his Israeli handler.” — Xan Brooks, The Guardian