Our Review

               Movie: THE PRESIDENT’S CAKE

            Rating: PG-13, strong language, some suggestive                                               material and smoking

                                       Length: 1:45 

                 Release Date: In theaters now  

Jeanne: Written and directed by Hasan Hadi, who grew up in Iraq during Saddam Hussein’s reign, THE PRESIDENT’S CAKE is his feature film debut. As a testament to his amazing talent, Hadi’s film was the Winner of the Camera D’or and Audience Award at the 2025 Cannes Film Festival.

Based on his own childhood memories, Hadi follows nine-year-old Lamia (Baneen Ahmed Nayyef), her best friend, Saeed (Sajad Mohamad Qasem), her grandmother, Bibi (Waheed Thabet Khreibat) and her pet rooster, Hindi, as they navigate a big city in search of the ingredients necessary to make a cake for her classroom’s celebration of the President’s birthday. Every year a student is chosen from names in a bowl --- and unfortunately for Lamia and Bibi, her name was pulled.

In 1990s Iraq, finding basic necessities is a monumental challenge, let alone the ingredients for a cake. Flour and sugar are basically non-existent, but Lamia is fearful she and her grandmother will end up in prison --- or worse --- if she fails. Guided by her own street smarts --- and Saeed’s --- Lamia perseveres. She also gets help from a concerned taxi driver named Jasim (Rahim Alhaj), who goes above and beyond to keep Lamia safe. 

THE PRESIDENT’S CAKE illustrates the daily struggles of ordinary people living through the corruption of Saddam’s torturous regime, including the reluctance of the local police to take the problems of the “peasants” seriously. Hadi also uses his film to demonstrate the power of love and friendship. Lamia and Saeed bicker like siblings, but they share a loving bond that is undeniable. There is danger lurking around every corner for these two children, making it impossible to know who to trust.

Hadi shot his movie in Iraq using non-actors. Rehearsals for the children involved playing games and telling stories. Baneen and Sajad are so amazing and truly natural in front of the cameras, it’s difficult to believe they’re not seasoned professional child actors. And the writer/director was not at all keen on making any political statements with THE PRESIDENT’S CAKE so that it could be used for propaganda.

I would say Hadi has succeeded. THE PRESIDENT’S CAKE is a beautiful film --- a powerful reminder of the lasting effects of war, especially for children.

Opinion: See It Now!

David: THE PRESIDENT’S CAKE is set in 1990s Iraq during the reign of Saddam Hussein. It is two days before Saddam’s birthday and school children are tasked with things like gathering fruits, decorations and flowers to commemorate their leader. But the most important job for a student, if his or her name is picked at random, is to bake a cake for the occasion. This task falls to a nine-year-old girl named Lamia, played brilliantly by Baneen Ahmed Nayyef.

The film is based on writer/director Hasan Hadi’s own childhood memories, and it is his feature debut. He used only regular people, not professional actors. And amazingly he held no rehearsals. Despite the historic time of this movie, politics plays almost no role although we do see Saddam at the end of the movie in archival footage celebrating his birthday.

Lamia needs to somehow obtain eggs, sugar and baking powder. She lovingly totes her beloved pet rooster, Hindi, everywhere she goes. And she is supported with the friendship of Saeed (Sajad Mohamad Qasem), a schoolmate who accompanies her on much of her journey.

One of my favorite scenes shows Lamia, increasingly desperate for the cake ingredients, hop on the outside back of a bus because she hasn’t the fare to ride normally. Another more dreadful sequence has Lamia befriended by an adult male who offers her sugar, and promises baking powder if she consents to something he wants. Let’s just say he’s not what he appears to be.

THE PRESIDENT’S CAKE is Iraq’s entry for the Academy Awards this year, and it is a highly decorated film, even at Cannes where it won The Camera D’or and the Audience Award. Two of the movie’s executive producers can boast of accolades, like Eric Roth, who won an Oscar for FORREST GUMP, and Marielle Heller with Oscar noms for two movies.

No nine-year-old girl should have to experience what this courageous Iraqi girl does in THE PRESIDENT’S CAKE. And although much of Iraq’s citizenry is devastatingly poor, Saddam wanted his birthday to be recognized. Based on the parades in his honor as shown in the film, much of the populace appears to idolize him --- or perhaps it’s just fear. At any rate, this is exactly what a dictatorship looks like.

Opinion: See It Now!