A compelling portrait of an all-female thrash metal band attempting to succeed in the face of war and tradition in the Middle East shines within this year’s BFI Flare line-up.
★★★★✰
Over the years, the thrash metal genre has prospered and now arrives a new band on the scene—Lebanon’s first and only all-female thrash metal band Slave to Sirens.
Formed in 2016, Slave to Sirens comprises five members and has been struggling to find success in their hometown due to a conservative political core. Documentary filmmaker Rita Baghdadi and producer Camilla Hall seek to tell the band’s journey by focussing on the relationship between two of the band’s key individuals: Shery Bechara (guitar) and Alma Doumani (bass). Sirens is an empowering music documentary with tons of heart that melds tragedy and hope exquisitely.
Sirens’ presentation style distinguishes itself compared to a usual documentary. The film opts for a more fly on the wall-type approach. Instead of featuring interviews individuals outside the band discussing their impact, the documentary chooses to direct the spotlight to Slave to Sirens themselves and let them express clearly without intervention.
This method allows the band to share their personal feelings and respond to certain situations. It is demonstrated through several scenes involving Shery and Alma as they share their lyrical ideas, arguments, feelings, and intimacy. With these moments, the film savours a first-hand perspective rather than other music industry minds telling us their impact. Through this approach, it allows the audience to immerse fully into Slave to Sirens’ individual creative process and day-to-day life.
What develops in these compelling unprompted moments is how likeable and engaging Slave to Sirens are as a collective. All of the members—especially Lilas Mayassi and Shery Bechara who are former lovers—often share quirky and light-hearted exchanges with one another whilst in the songwriting process. Their intimacy resonates in this documentary and when darker aspects or conflicts arise, the emotional impact is enhanced based on the congeniality of the group.
When tackling the idea of struggling to strive in a city permeated with severe political insecurity and going against tradition, examining their side of the story gives a great insight into a perspective rooted in such a politically tense scenario. By representing their challenging efforts and the wider scope of their situation, the film is able to highlight the underlying reasoning why and what motivates Slaves to Sirens to form their general identity. The combination of political and societal stigmatisation with their endeavour to become successful additionally strengthens the authenticity of Sirens and formulates a narrative that always remains true to what the members desire.
Although Sirens undeniably does justice to this band and crafts a captivating piece, one slight issue is that some members receive more screen time compared to others. At the centre is the relationship of Lilas Mayassi and Shery Bechara that narrates the majority of the experiences and is undoubtedly intriguing to explore. However, the remaining three, Maya S. Khairallah, Alma Doumani and Tatyana Boughaba rarely have the opportunity to share their ideas. It would have benefitted a little more hearing from the individuals behind the lead vocals, bass and drums regarding their own creative processes and their position amongst a tense political atmosphere.
The Verdict
Sirens is an empowering documentary from start to finish with heart-felt and thought-provoking discussions of sexuality and oppression. The band flourish as a compelling subject for exploration with their charm and distinct methodology for their music.
Words by Ethan Soffe
This film screened as part of this 2022’s BFI Flare Film Festival, find the rest of our coverage here
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