For My Father (Sof Shavua B'Tel Aviv) reviews
Review by on 27 Sep 2009
I hope 5 is the top rating (rather than one) - this is a fabulous film and will make history in many ways... give it the best rating!!
I hope 5 is the top rating (rather than one) - this is a fabulous film and will make history in many ways... give it the best rating!!
Review by on 27 Sep 2009
Breaking news: extremism is a bad thing and if we all just took the time to get to know each other we’d get along just fine. Our source for this shocking insight is Dror Zahavi’s latest film, FOR MY FATHER.
The movie follows Palestinian suicide bomber Tarek (Shredi Jabarin) as he arrives in Tel Aviv expecting quick martyrdom. Due to a technical glitch with his explosive device he has to spend a weekend behind enemy lines instead, which forces him to fraternise with the locals and leads him to question his upcoming action.
This is a remarkably similar plot to that of excellent 1990s Spanish thriller DIAS CONTADOS (RUNNING OUT OF TIME). But whereas Imanol Uribe’s story was a spot-on portrayal of a man trapped by his own past mistakes, FOR MY FATHER opts to exempt its protagonist of almost all responsibility for what he’s about to do. Blame is simplistically shifted towards hardliners on both sides of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. This doesn’t make for compelling cinema.
Fortunately, the film does have a number of saving graces. Jabarin’s performance as the troubled young terrorist who is torn between conflicting loyalties is beautifully understated. Equally impressive is Shlomo Vishinsky’s turn as the film’s moral compass, electrical repairs shop owner Katz.
Best of all is the ending that Zahavi and his writers have given their tale. Despite its somewhat facile nature, the film’s climax is genuinely moving. And that just about allows FOR MY FATHER to make a mildly favourable impression.
ALEX DIAZ
Breaking news: extremism is a bad thing and if we all just took the time to get to know each other we’d get along just fine. Our source for this shocking insight is Dror Zahavi’s latest film, FOR MY FATHER.The movie follows Palestinian suicide bomber Tarek (Shredi Jabarin) as he arrives in Tel Aviv expecting quick martyrdom. Due to a technical glitch with his explosive device he has to spend a weekend behind enemy lines instead, which forces him to fraternise with the locals and leads him to question his upcoming action.
This is a remarkably similar plot to that of excellent 1990s Spanish thriller DIAS CONTADOS (RUNNING OUT OF TIME). But whereas Imanol Uribe’s story was a spot-on portrayal of a man trapped by his own past mistakes, FOR MY FATHER opts to exempt its protagonist of almost all responsibility for what he’s about to do. Blame is simplistically shifted towards hardliners on both sides of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. This doesn’t make for compelling cinema.
Fortunately, the film does have a number of saving graces. Jabarin’s performance as the troubled young terrorist who is torn between conflicting loyalties is beautifully understated. Equally impressive is Shlomo Vishinsky’s turn as the film’s moral compass, electrical repairs shop owner Katz.
Best of all is the ending that Zahavi and his writers have given their tale. Despite its somewhat facile nature, the film’s climax is genuinely moving. And that just about allows FOR MY FATHER to make a mildly favourable impression.
ALEX DIAZ
Review by on 26 Sep 2009
At any film festival there is the film that surprises you, that you see simply because it sounds decent, and then far exceeds your expectations. I have just found mine for this year.
It is modern-day Tel Aviv and Tarek has strapped himself with a bomb to blow up in a busy marketplace. However, the switch malfunctions and he find himself stuck for the weekend, surrounded by those he came to kill. With numerous subplots and various residents interacting with Tarek, to go deeper into the story would not do it justice. But what a wonderful predicament, and through all the people he encounters and the situations he comes across, the fact that a bomb is strapped to him plays on the mind – both the audience and him - like a volcano waiting to erupt.
Beautifully shot in that timeless fashion where you forget that the camera exists and the story simply rises to the surface as if there were nothing between the audience and the characters. The setting is stunning, and in line with the running theme of the film, of opposing forces coming together; this holiday resort acting as a prison, not only to Tarek, but those living there.
While obviously politically charged, the film works because it has heart, and the humanity of the characters far outweighs their political leanings – in fact, if anything, the politics of their world becomes like a chain binding them. The chemistry between them keeps the relationships alive, making the performances naturally charged.
A simple and thought-provoking tale, in the best sense of that description, but told with subtlety and humour, with thrilling moments and tragic situations. This is the sort of film that you wish you experienced with every trip to the cinema.
At any film festival there is the film that surprises you, that you see simply because it sounds decent, and then far exceeds your expectations. I have just found mine for this year.It is modern-day Tel Aviv and Tarek has strapped himself with a bomb to blow up in a busy marketplace. However, the switch malfunctions and he find himself stuck for the weekend, surrounded by those he came to kill. With numerous subplots and various residents interacting with Tarek, to go deeper into the story would not do it justice. But what a wonderful predicament, and through all the people he encounters and the situations he comes across, the fact that a bomb is strapped to him plays on the mind – both the audience and him - like a volcano waiting to erupt.
Beautifully shot in that timeless fashion where you forget that the camera exists and the story simply rises to the surface as if there were nothing between the audience and the characters. The setting is stunning, and in line with the running theme of the film, of opposing forces coming together; this holiday resort acting as a prison, not only to Tarek, but those living there.
While obviously politically charged, the film works because it has heart, and the humanity of the characters far outweighs their political leanings – in fact, if anything, the politics of their world becomes like a chain binding them. The chemistry between them keeps the relationships alive, making the performances naturally charged.
A simple and thought-provoking tale, in the best sense of that description, but told with subtlety and humour, with thrilling moments and tragic situations. This is the sort of film that you wish you experienced with every trip to the cinema.
Review by on 26 Sep 2009
My film of the Festival. Funny, romantic, moving and tense as hell.
My film of the Festival. Funny, romantic, moving and tense as hell.
Film details
For My Father
MAIN FEATURES
Director: Dror Zahavi
Actor: Shredi Jabarin
Actor: Shlomo Vishinski
Actor: Hili Yalon
Actor: Shredi Jabarin
Actor: Shlomo Vishinski
Actor: Hili Yalon
Germany, 2008.
95 mins. Hebrew and Arabic with English subtitles.
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