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Preview of the Israeli Film Festival
With the Israeli Film Festival gearing up to commence in Melbourne and Sydney, FILMINK gives you a taste of two of the films featured.
EYES WIDE OPEN
Directed by: Haim Tabakman. Starring: Zohar Strauss, Ran Danker, Tzahi Grad, Isaac Sharry
This searing portrait of sexuality and religion was launched at The Cannes Film Festival to an enthusiastic response. Although its subject - the cultural suffocation of gay lovers - is hardly new material, that the film explores it in the context of marriage, age-disparity and Orthodox Judaism is provocative indeed. This beautifully understated film is not to all tastes - its patient approach would induce restless toe-tapping in those more accustomed to the energy of, say, Iron Man. But if thoughtful, often painful exploration of suppressed humanity is to your taste, then Eyes Wide Open is your film.
Aaron (the beguiling Zohar Strauss) is a butcher in Jerusalem. Devout and happily married, he's a pillar of the local community. His life is turned upside down when he employs a young man, Ezri (Ran Danker), and embarks on an unexpected love affair. It's a simple story and one blessedly free of the narrative stunts of similar films - director Haim Tabakman dispenses with histrionics, and the worst case of obvious tragedy. There is suffering, of course - actually, there's lots of it (this is a Jewish story after all) - but it's framed with authenticity.
Accordingly, we're given a film that neatly explores with heart-wrenching intensity men who, if they follow their hearts, stand to lose everything. It's distressing stuff. While Tabakman brushes close to the edge on occasion (Aaron's exile is reflected too neatly with a straight couple's misfortune, and there's lots of meat...), Eyes Wide Open mostly hits its mark. Strauss is central to this with a wonderfully restrained performance, while Danker keeps his youthful energy in check. Beautiful cinematography does the rest. This may not be groundbreaking per se, but it certainly gives run of the mill gay cinema a run for its money.
PHOBIDILIA (pictured)
Directed by: Doran & Yoav Paz. Starring: Ofer Shechter, Efrat Boimold, Shlomo Bar-Shavit, Efrat Dor
In the digital world, social interaction has changed beyond recognition. There is nothing that can't be done online - communications, retail, entertainment - rendering any need to engage with the real world obsolete. What can't you order over the net? So, if you have a fear of people and public spaces, not dealing with your disorder is a mere keystroke away. As it is in Phobidilia, where an unnamed young man attempts to detach himself from the outside world. It's the simplicity of his solution that makes it so perfect. So starts this engaging debut from Israeli whiz-kid brothers Doran and Yoav Paz. Adapting a dynamic story by Izhar Harlev, they create an intriguing tale about the perils of the internet age and cultural isolation.
A chink in our protagonist's defence opens when a neighbour, acting on behalf of his landlord, issues marching orders - his apartment is up for sale. At the same time, a persistent cable TV saleswoman invades his home, and eventually his heart. The devil is an online girlfriend, a pay-as-you-go sex siren who takes umbrage at her non-existent (namely, cyber) status. Paranoia sets in, chaos reigns, and his carefully constructed order falls apart. Try as you might, you can't keep the world out. Yet from that unlikely occasion springs a surprising liberation as he learns the value of humanity, and of socialising.
There's little subtly to the metaphorical underpinnings of Phobidilia - not that the brothers are trying especially hard to be delicate in their treatment of the story's themes: the emotional cost of regional engagement foremost among them. This, and a vivid production styling, are the film's clear strengths. There's a vitality to the Paz brothers' film that serves them well. As both calling card and warning shot, it suggests that an exciting new wave of Israeli cinema is on its way.
The AICE Israeli Film Festival runs in Melbourne at Palace Cinema Como and Brighton Bay August 17-22, and at the Palace Verona Cinemas in Sydney August 31-September 5. For more information on the festival, click here.