*"A poetic tour de force!" -Toronto International Film Festival
*"One of the best works to come out of the current explosion in filmmaking in the Middle East!" -Indiewire
*Criticwire grade: A
*IndieWIRE asked "Over 40 Criticwire members to submit their top picks for TIFF. The poll of The Independent's film critic ranked WHEN I SAW YOU among his "BEST FILMS" at TIFF12! And actress Ruba Blal, who plays Ghaydaa, was named in the Best Performance category.
*"One of the most distinctive films from the Arab world in recent years." - The Toronto Star
*"Reminiscent of Steven Soderbergh's 'Che', and a defiant message about the refusal to give up hope of a return home." - Indiewire
*"Blal and Saleh Bakri stand out: Blal as the protective mother who still retains an unconventional spark, and Bakri (the lead in "Salt of This Sea") as a bearded commando with eyes for Ghaydaa. Handsome lensing by Helene Louvart ("Pina") contrasts the crowded, claustrophobic spaces of the Harir refugee camp with the open freedom of the Dibeen forest. Other craft credits are pro, with the period music track a particular delight." -Variety
*"A touching, beautiful masterpiece of a film, an ode to the displaced the world over and to any of us who have ever lived somewhere other than our own birth country, yearning for home." - Huffington Post
*"Asfa is a treat to watch with a stubborn flair for the dramatic. He holds his own against the more seasoned cast, keeping them on their toes and adding a wonderful sense of comedy to break the tension of their dire situation. Through brief sparks of levity and immense strength of familial community, Jacir humanizes a people many have been taught to despise as villains. She gives Palestinians a voice in their quest—whether right or wrong—to return to the lives they once led. With a couple of gorgeous campfire songs and more even subtler details, she exposes her audience to a culture not alike our own by stripping away the present, warped message of destruction that’s replaced it in the world’s consciousness. Tarek like all children of war never wanted the fight; it was brought to him when the only world he ever knew was irrevocably shattered. His hasty, misguided quest for normalcy reminds his brethren why they fight while showing us outsiders how powerful the human spirit is and always will be despite circumstances trying their hardest to prevent it." -Film Stage Review
*"Five brave films have made TIFF stand out in a very particular way for me this year. These films are the films which motivate our best filmmakers to create works of art in the first place of filmmaking on my charts. Jacir's newest film When I Saw You... " - Sydney Levine
*"When I Saw You is cinematic poetry, the perfect blend of stunning cinematography, humanly portrayed characters and a story that hits you with an immediate gut reaction, yet colors your dreams and inhabits your thoughts for days to come. Beautiful, groundbreaking and deeply, deeply moving." -E. Nina Rothe, The Huffington Post
