Worth: $10.00
FilmInk rates movies out of $20 — the score indicates the amount we believe a ticket to the movie to be worth
Cast:
Yossi Atia, Lihi Kornowski, Itamar Rose
Intro:
Torpid and pretty tedious, but mercifully short.
Born In Jerusalem And Still Alive is billed as a black comedy, and the potentially interesting high-concept plot premise certainly makes that prospect credible. A young guy is appalled by the “illusion” of a historical city tour, and starts his own tour – of terror attack sites.
This is, however, not really a comedy at all. (Or, if it is, the jokes are not apparent and spectacularly unfunny.) Which would be fine, except that nor is it a particularly engaging drama on any level.
The man is Ronen Matalon, played by Yossi Atia who also wrote the script and co-directed. Ronen is a lifeless, depressive and rather dorky and socially inept fellow, who has no gift of the gab – not, one might say, the ideal candidate to lead a speaking tour. His commentary is sketchy – with, surprise surprise, virtually no mention of the Palestinian cause – but it makes room for both banalities and personal irrelevancies. (Such as pointing out the spot where he had his first kiss.) We feel sorry for him for various reasons, and we like his attentiveness to his increasingly frail and dependent father; but none of this stops him from being boring.
At any rate, into Ronen’s life comes Asia Mulan (Lihi Kornowski), who has been studying in Barcelona and who is bursting with all the joie-de-vivre which he lacks. What follows is somewhat predictable, but it’s reasonably well handled and acted.
Torpid and pretty tedious – and the godawful ‘feelgood’ music doesn’t help – but mercifully short.
contrary to review I founf film moving and insightful.
the direction of the relationship with Asia Mulan
at the film’s endind was unclear and the final scene with him
going into the water seemed meaningful but to me puzzling.