israeli film festival new york 2011

its that time of the year again. its time for the israeli film festival. this years films will be screened at amc's movie theater on broadway and 84th street in manhattan. the festival is being held from may 5- may 19 . i plan on attending three of the movies. i will let you all know what i think of them after i see them.
i missed last year's israeli film festival because i found out about it late and the location of the screenings was inconvenient for me. i have been on the israeli film festival's e-mail list for years. this year they sent out word about this year's festival before pesach so i was able to plan in advance.
if you decide to attend the website is israeli film festival.

hooked on srugim

ever since i saw the first three episodes at the israeli film festival in november 2008 i fell in love with the israeli tv show srugim.                          srugim is about israeli orthodox singles in there late 20's early 30's living in  jerusalem . it is amazing to see a tv show that shows life as a single orthodox jew. though one of the characters is otd, the rest are not which is what makes this show unique. it is so cliche to chronicle someone who is otd. to chronicle someone who is frum and single and is sincere  is much more of  a challenge.
srugim has been shown on the jewish channel with subtitles and it is also on dvd. the only drawback of the dvds is that they are in the israeli format and not in the us format.
 between friends who have cable and friends who have the dvds i have managed to see all of the first season and most of the second season of srugim. 
i would love to elaborate more about the episodes, but i don't want to ruin it for you.

a matter of size

last night i saw the israeli movie a matter of size . i had ignored it when it was at the israeli film festival this year. a matter of size is a movie about a group of overweight israeli men who leave weight watchers to form a sumo wrestling team. i thought it would just be about a bunch of jewish men kvetching. i see enough of this in real life.

as it turns out the israeli weight watchers group was co-ed and one of the main characters in the movie was a woman.

a matter of size is an extremely witty movie. it also has a message. some people no matter how much they try to lose weight they may never be svelte. one should find dreams to reach for no matter one's size. if one's love life is less than perfect one should not always blame it on a large physique. everyone has foibles no matter one's size.

it was nice to see an israeli movie that is just a slice of life instead of war, politics or the holocaust.

i highly recommend this movie.*****

srugim, the little traitor,and the debt

i have seen three more films at the israeli film festival. first on the agenda is srugim. its about modern orthodox singles in yerushalayim . very cute. it reminded me of my life . especially the communal shabbat meals . they even included a speed dating scene.
srugim is a tv series in israel. they showed three episodes at the festival. it just goes to show that no matter where you are being frum and single is the same. israel, america , etc. its nice to see israeli everyday life.
the next movie i saw was the little traitor. this is film set in 1947 israel . most of the movie is in english. the story is of a little boy, son of polish jewish survivors, who befriends a british soldier during this time. alfred molina plays the british soldier. it is a really charming story.
the last movie i saw was the debt. it was well done, but im not really a big fan of gory blood and guts stories so it wasnt really my favorite. its the story of 3 mossad agents seeking out a nazi war criminal for trial.gila almagor, first lady of israeli film , is the star of the show. for this alone its worth seeing, but otherwise, skip it if you arent a fan of csi, nypdblue, etc.
this year's festival had the best selections in several years. i always enjoy the israeli film festival, but overall, this year had the best collection of films. usually there are one or two that i like, but this year there i liked several. my favorite film of this year's festival was lost islands. though i really enjoyed the little traitor, the secrets, and srugim, lost islands is by far the best. if someone can only see one film, see lost islands. the festival will be travelling next to miami, so hear this floridians, if you can only see one movie at this year's israeli film festival, see lost islands. you wont be sorry!!!

lost islands

i attended the israeli film festival last evening and i saw lost islands. it was an amazing film. its a movie about a family with five sons in the early 1980's . they feature many great american songs from that era. the whole family sings the song tainted love as well as the theme song from the love boat. there's a wedding in the movie and they dance to the hustle. what nostalgia!!
the two main characters are twins who both vie for the same girl. one twin is the bookish type and the other is a hot sephardic stud with beautiful blue eyes. the film shows how no one is all good or all bad. erez is a goody -goody who made some bad choices and ofer is a sensitive hottie who takes charge when tragedy befalls his family . the scenes of ofer taking care of his family are most touching.
i dont want to give away the whole movie, so definitely go see it. if you cant catch it at the israeli film festival it will mostly likely show up at the quad ,the jcc, film forum , the angelica , Lincoln plaza cinemas etc at some point. if its a well received movie it will. at some point.

the israeli film festival

its that time of year again. its the israeli film festival. its being held in nyc through november 13 and it started october 29. this year its being screened at the clearview cinema on 62nd and broadway. this year seems to be a little more organized than last year. thank goodness. there was such chaos last year that i almost didnt want to come back this year. thankfully the staff at the clearview has been somewhat defanged and the ticket holders line moved smoothly.
i saw the controversial movie the secrets . the filmmaker avi nesher was there for a q&a after the screening.
the movie is about a young woman who decides to postpone her wedding after her mother dies to go to seminary . at the seminary she meets a free-spirited rebel and the trouble begins . surprise, surprise the two young women explore their sexuality together. why does a movie about independent frum women have to have them explore switching teams? despite this, i still thought that this was a good movie. though it tries to titillate a bit too much, it doesnt completely demean the orthodox community either.
i plan to see a few more of the screenings at the festival. i plan on seeing srugim which is about modern orthodox singles in israel. just up my alley. ill let you know if i like it....

hill 24 doesnt answer

hill 24 doesnt answer is considered the first movie made in israel after the state was established. its a movie about the israeli war of independence. its in black and white. its mostly in english. its an excellent movie even though the tone of the movie almost seems too melodramatic .

there is a scene in the movie where the israelis were trying to gain control of jeruslem and many were in misgav ladach hospital when the arabs gained control. right before the jews surrendered they sang im eshkachach yerushalayim. it was one of the most moving scenes.

its was also interesting how they featured an american jew who came to israel to fight in the war of independence.

also included was a scene where an israeli soldier captured a german soldier on the battlefield in israel and his internal struggle.

i saw this movie at the israeli film festival in nyc a few years ago.

hill 24 doesnt answer will be playing at the jcc in nyc on sunday september 14. perhaps this will spawn other showings throughout the country.

unsettled

i saw the movie unsettled tonight. unsettled is a film about the gaza withdrawal in in 2005. the film is directed by adam hootnick . i was so glad to be at the screening tonight because adam hootnick, the director was there and there was a q&a session at the end of the screening. needless to say he is too cute for words. now to more serious business, the film itself. the film centers more specifically around 2 soldiers who are drafted in to carrying out the expulsion of the residents of gaza as well as 3 residents of gush katif and netzarim. 2 are religious and one is not. included in the film is a non-religious activist whose real reason for wanting the withdrawal from the settlements was because she didnt feel non-religious soldiers should risk their lives to defend and protect the frum settlers. settlers who they themselves had served in the army. she hid behind her party line of her grief over her sister's murder in the1996 purim terrroist attack. this could not justify her cold attitude toward the inhabitants of the gaza "setttlements". she had less rachmanas than the soldiers who had to carry out this tragic event.

it was heartbreaking to watch the soldiers prepare for a maneuver they did not fully understand themselves. some of them were crying when they had to evict people from their homes .when they heard the heartbreaking words of those who were being evicted they could not fight their tears.


it was quite heart wrenching to see the residents sing and dance at the end of their stay in gaza. i was so impressed . even though they knew on some level that they would be leaving they were able to rejoice in the remaining moments they still had, instead of just moping around in depression.

lior, a non-religious lifeguard who lived in gush katif was a reminder that not all of those who lived there were religious. his family chose to leave before being forced out. they took everything, including the roof. they wanted to leave with a good memory of their home, instead of being one of being physically ousted.

i cried throughout the movie. it was sad to see ariel sharon who had sanctioned the settlements to begin with, force people to leave those very places . the most sad part was to see jewish people being forced to evict other jewish people.

i think that the film was fair to all involved and the moments captured spoke for themselves.
i highly recommend it.

jellyfish

i saw the movie jellyfish on friday. though it is a little slow moving i did like it. after seeing it once i would like to see it a second time so i can catch all of the nuances i may have missed. the movie has a few different stories going on at once. one story is about a waitress who breaks up with her boyfriend , finds a little girl at the beach and gets fired. the next story is about a couple who gets married (our waitress is at work here) and the wife breaks her leg at their wedding. this couple seems so real i almost felt embarrassed witnessing their dialogue. the other main story is about a Filipino woman who is working in israel as an assistant to older women. even though she does not speak hebrew, her employers ( children of the elderly women) somehow think she's a good caretaker for their mothers. they are right. these two are guests at the wedding . some of the most wicked humor is employed in this story. the elderly charge tries to communicate in german to the Filipino woman because she doesnt understand hebrew. she of course just speaks hebrew and german. the Filipino woman just speaks english and Filipino.i know if i try to speak french , i start speaking hebrew because thats the first language i think of when i think of a foreign language. these scenes were hilarious!!
the heaviness of this movie was tempered by humor and supernatural special effects. the eyes of the little girl who is found at the beach are so expressive that they beckon one to a time of one's innocence. they sent the waitress batya back to confront her childhood demons. at some point i thought that this child was really batya as a child.
the picture painted of the Filipino woman and her employer seemed quite realistic. much better than the picture of foreign workers displayed in the movie james' journey to jerusalem(a disappointing movie which i do not recommend.)
the ending is magical. im tempted to give it away, but i wont.
this is another movie that shows the human side of israel. this is so important. its important to remember the strife. its important to realize that those enduring this strife are individuals full of love and life and emotion just like you and me!!

israeli movie :aviva my love

i recently saw the israeli movie aviva my love. its the story of a woman who is trying to pursue a writing career while trying to support her unemployed, depressed husband and her precocious children. one of the actors from the band's visit was also in this film. this actor, whose name escapes me, certainly has no reason to worry about being typecast. in the band's visit he played a sympathetic divorced arab while in this movie he plays a washed up jewish writer. what is refreshing about this movie is that none of the reviews do it justice nor do they prepare you for the grand performance the movie delivers. this movie is about a woman who really wants to become a published writer and about how corruption in business, even in a creative field can fracture one's dreams. and of course there is a subplot about how no matter how much aviva thinks she mut survive on her own she realizes that she can cope better with her loved one's rallying support. lastly this movie helps us view israeli society as people who have hopes and dreams just like the rest of the world while living with daily threats of terror.

the band's visit

i saw the israeli movie the band's visit on sunday night. it was cute. it was an israeli movie about an egyptian police band who get lost and end up in an israeli town . they have to stay overnight because by the time they get there there is no more bus service to the town they really wanted to go to. i liked it because it felt like a real slice of life of two different types of people who are forced to spend a little time together and how they manage to co-exist. what i liked about the movie is that instead of actually spelling out to you that israelis and egyptians have differences, it just presents it as a given, but delves more in to the fact that are from peoples who are different from each other in a general sense but they never spell out specifically WHY . to me this is why the movie works. its about people as people being different, but not in a global political way. of course when i read a review of the movie in the angelika's movie theater flyer, it makes the movie seem like it deals with the politcal differences between egyptians and israelis. this i find so humorous. if i had read their review before viewing the movie i probably would never have gone to see it.

opening day at the jewish film festival

yesterday was opening day at the jewish film festival. i saw two movies yesterday . i saw tehillim and hebrew lesson . tehillim was about a modern orthodox woman whose husband leaves her and her two kids and the aftermath. the father in law was a bit more religious than his daughter in law. one of the film producers was in attendance. i found it quite enjoyable, but for those who like films with nice pat endings it may not be .
the second film that i saw was called a hebrew lesson ,which was directed by david offeck who also directed number seventeen which was the movie about identifying the unidentified victim of an israeli bus bombing. one of the directors (not david offeck) was in attendance as well. hebrew lesson is an engaging as well as disturbing film. it chronicles the lives of two chinese women, one german woman , and one peruvian woman who are in an ulpan in israel and are all involved with jewish israeli men ( i know ive said that i normally boycott these types of films, but i didnt realize there was such a strong theme of intermarriage in the film.) the last individual featured at the ulpan was sasha a jewish russian born man. what i found disturbing was that at the expense of making an interesting story it made it seem like the majority of people who want to make aliyah to israel are non-jewish women involved with jewish men. what i found disturbing was the way these people who were presented as the "new Israelis" aren't even jewish. although, to be fair they did broach the subject of the german woman converting and without giving away her whole story, there was alot of dialogue with her about this especially since she was German. they were teaching judaism as just a culture to fit in with. although i cant say that i have any concrete plans to move to israel, it made me feel at least more strongly than usual, that i should move to israel just to make sure that jews will actually comprise a majorty of new olim. i think that they sacrificed a little bit of reality to make it more interesting. they wanted to make israel seem so cosmopolitan that anyone would want to live there that they didnt show why it would be so special for an actual jewish person to want to live in the jewish state. the few stories they showed that were jewish stories of new olim such as the russian guy and the parisian jewish ulpan teacher were uncomfortably overshadowed by the stories of the non-jewish olim. one of the chinese olim went so far as making a documentary about the illegal chinese immigrants to israel, which actually made one begin to question what the identity of an israeli is based on . is being jewish the essence of being israeli? moreover, IF this can be a question, what a sorry state the state of israel is in.