2026 Oscar Nominee: The Voice of Hind Rajab (2025) – A Devastating, Unforgettable Testament to Humanity in Hell

How can a film be both a crucial historical document and an almost unwatchable emotional ordeal? The Voice of Hind Rajab is exactly that. This is not a film you “enjoy”; it is a film you endure, witness, and are forever changed by. Using the real, harrowing audio of a six-year-old girl pleading for her life from a car surrounded by the bodies of her family, this docudrama is a devastating portrait of bureaucracy, war, and the flickering light of human compassion in utter darkness. It is a searing, essential piece of cinema that broke me. I gave it a perfect score not because it is easy, but because it is necessary.

The Plot: A Real-Time Descent into Helplessness

The premise is tragically simple. On January 29, 2024, volunteers at the Palestine Red Crescent Society receive an emergency call. On the line is Hind Rajab, a six-year-old girl. She is trapped in a car in Gaza, under Israeli army fire. Her relatives in the car with her are dead.

What follows is a real-time chronicle of a rescue mission that becomes a Kafkaesque nightmare. The ambulance is just 8 minutes away. But it cannot move. To reach her, the Red Crescent must ask the Red Cross, who must ask the Israeli Defence Ministry, who must contact soldiers on the ground to secure a “safe route.” Each layer of bureaucracy takes hours, while on the phone, a child’s voice grows fainter.

The film unfolds in two harrowing parallel dramas. The first is Hind’s voice—the actual recordings used in the film. She is confused, terrified. She says she is alone, then that her aunt and uncle are sleeping, then, with chilling simplicity, that they are dead. She calls herself “Hanood.” She asks when the ambulance is coming. She waits.

The second drama is inside the Red Crescent offices. Volunteers like Rana (Saja Kilani), Omar (Motaz Malhees), and Mahdi (Amer Hlehel) are our conduit. They argue, they cry, they scream in frustration, they plead with distant officials. Their performances are so raw and authentic you feel you are in the room, sharing their devastating powerlessness. They are trying to hold onto one life in a system designed for indifference.

My Take: An Unshakeable, Necessary Agony

I am totally devastated. First, because it is about a child. Second, because it is a real event. Director Kaouther Ben Hania does not let you look away. The film’s power comes from its brutal juxtaposition: the intimate, fragile voice of a little girl against the cold, impersonal machinery of war and protocol.

The most heartbreaking moments come from the child’s confusion. She cannot describe where she is. She cannot understand why no one is coming. The volunteers must simultaneously be crisis counsellors, negotiators, and broken human beings, all while hearing the gunfire in the background of their phone call.

The final act of the film lands with a sledgehammer. It incorporates real footage and photos—of the volunteers, of the aftermath. We see the real Omar and Nisreen, the real car, Hind’s real mother and brother. This transition from drama to documentary destroys the final wall between “movie” and “reality.” It is a gut punch that makes the tragedy horrifically concrete.

This is more than a film about one girl. Hind Rajab’s case is just an example. As the film implicitly screams, according to current data, over 20,000 children have been killed in Gaza since October 2023. This is a story about all of them.

Ratings, Reception & A Moral Imperative

• IMDb: 8.4/10 
• Rotten Tomatoes: 95% Critics / 92% Audience
• Awards: Grand Jury Prize, Venice Film Festival; Oscar Nominee for Best International Feature.

The scores are staggeringly high because the film is an undeniable artistic and moral achievement. Critics and audiences alike recognize its raw power and vital importance. It is not “entertainment”; it is testimony.

And I am also thankful that Academy Award has listed this film as Oscar nominee for Best International Feature.

See: 2026 Oscar Nominations Announced: Complete List and Key Takeaways

Final Verdict: A Perfect Score for an Imperfect World

My rating is 10 out of 10.

We need more movies like this. Films that force the world to look, to listen, to remember the human cost of political abstractions. It is a masterpiece of empathy and anger.

Will I rewatch it? Honestly, no. It hurts too much. The pain it evokes is profound and permanent. But do I recommend it? Absolutely, to everyone. It is a difficult, essential watch. It is the voice of Hind Rajab, and now, it must be ours.

Have you seen The Voice of Hind Rajab? How did you process its emotional impact? It’s a film that demands discussion—share your thoughts in the comments below with respect and compassion.

And suggest a movie for my next review. I may need something radically different, perhaps a film about hope or human connection, to recover from this one.

If you believe in cinema’s power to bear witness, please share this review to amplify this vital story. Thank you for reading.

See also My full list of 2026 movie reviews →