Yossi

Yossi is a sequel to but not a continuation of Yossi & Jagger, and I don't care that this movie doesn't carry that romance to new heights of ecstasy. This is a story of what happens to Yossi later in life; the fact that ten years later Jagger isn't still an integral part of it is both normal and fine with me.

What does offend me greatly is the way Yossi is presented as if his being over 30 and slightly heavier than an anorexic fashion model makes him gross and repellent, incredibly lucky if any man even slightly younger or thinner looks at him without vomiting or at least sneering. Obesity is far too extreme a term, and even overweight is unreasonable. Yossi is a normal size, and he is by far the sexiest man in this movie. It's any other man who's lucky to get him, not the other way around.

The movie's second great offense is Lior Ashkenazi, as Yossi's pseudo-friend and fellow cardiologist Moti. Somebody in addition to Ashkenazi himself evidently finds him overwhelmingly attractive, but not me. I can't stand him. The most disgusting, most infuriating movie scene I've seen in years has him bringing a girl into the bar toilet where Yossi is peeing and trying to work up a sleazy threesome even though Yossi clearly isn't interested.

I know Moti is supposed to be disgusting, as are several others in this movie; but I already know that most people - especially straight men (and, unfortunately, most young gay men, like a smug, insufferable jerk Yossi meets online, and even the supposedly hot but arrogant and ugly soldier Tom who forces himself on Yossi near the end) - are disgusting, and having offensive behavior rubbed in my face doesn't entertain me.

I love Ohad Knoller, and the older and beefier he gets the sexier he gets, but he's wasted in this sadly and annoyingly shallow movie. Eytan Fox laid an egg this time.

Both of these movies were powerful films and the sequel does not disappoint. Ohad Knoller did a wonderful job. One of the existing reviews seemed to judge everything based on the looks of the individual actors in the film which seemed rather shallow. I did agree with them on some points though. Yes, Yossi, in spite of the weight he has added, still carried the movie, and he is still a strikingly handsome fellow. At first I could not recognize him as the same fellow that was in Jossi and Jagger. Secondly, the toilet scene where the other doctor brings a girl in to have a threesome with Yossi, seemed a little out of place, but perhaps it added some additional perspective to the lonely and dismal place that Jossi was in his life at that stage. Overall, I loved the movie and would say that it is easily Israel's answer to Brokeback Mountain. I thought about Jossi for days after viewing the film in much the same way I did when I saw Brokeback Mountain.

I would now like to see anything with Ohad Knoller in it...he is my new favorite actor. Go Ohad!!!

This film tells the life of Yossi, the Israeli soldier who lost his love in war, ten years after his loss. Yossi has become a cardiologist, working in a hospital. He is lonely and solitary on purpose. He meets a young soldier, and he struggles whether to let someone into his life or not, just like last time with Jagger.

"Yossi" is very similar to the last film, "Yossi & Jagger". Yossi is basically still the same restrained and solitary man, rejecting something beautiful for reasons only he would know. The pacing is slow, which echoes the psychological state of Yossi being slow to warm up to people who love him. It also touches on healing after loss, and the stigma on being gay, but these themes are not so well developed to become tear jerking subplots. Though it is not particularly engaging or moving, and the low budget shows, it is still worth a watch.

I normally don't watch sequels when I haven't seen the original but in the case of "Yossi" I thought I would make an exception. It's a sequel to "Yossi and Jagger" and it takes up the story of Yossi, an Israeli doctor, after the death of his lover, Jagger, who was killed when they were soldiers in the Lebanon. Other than providing some kind of happy ending for Yossi this time round this seems to me a somewhat pointless film despite being very well written, directed and acted. As gay 'romances' go it's certainly up-front and honest and hardly sentimental but the 10 year gap between the two films gives this the feeling of an afterthought. Nevertheless, it's still a welcome addition to LGBT cinema if only for treating both its characters and its audience with some degree of intelligence.

This film is such a nice sequel to the 2002 "Yossi & Jagger"! The first one had a simple and nice plot, but I had issues with the undergrad-quality cinematography, and despite apparently winning awards, I wasn't very convinced by Ohad Knoller's acting, who played Yossi in the film. This sequel, however, is exactly what I was expecting: great cinematography, a complex but lovable plot, and great acting by Ohad, who really played Yossi well in this film.

Although I believe that it's totally fine that you don't watch "Yossi & Jagger" before watching this film, watching it will definitely help you understand a lot more in the film that hasn't been explicitly stated, like why Yossi would become a doctor and why he decides to go on a trip to Sinai (Sinai?!). This film isn't fully focusing on a romantic relationship like the first one did; instead it explores how Yossi lives after the death of Lior, and everyone of us can definitely identify with some of the moments shown in the film: getting off in a dark room at night, having Chinese takeaway at home alone, and watching mindless animal documentaries. Oh, and having hookups with shallow, petty gay men. Ohad Knoller played Yossi really well in the film; display of emotions is almost effortless, and although you can argue that it doesn't take much effort to play a sad, almost-middle-aged gay man, his little smiles and at times teary eyes are proof that Ohad knows how to play a character well. I have so much respect for Ohad after watching this movie. About his weight: yes, the Yossi we see is not the same one we saw in "Yossi & Jagger", but that has helped the movie delivered some of the most precious messages we have ever heard in film history about body positivity in the gay community.

This film has a romantic plot, after all. The relationship is lovely, develops at the right pace, and most importantly, is believable. That's why I say this film will make you feel so good. It's so good that I hope it is true, and unfortunately that means we probably won't see a third movie in the making - but never mind because it is such a good wrap-up to a great story already.

The review should not end without pointing out how great the soundtrack is - a great selection of songs to accompany the story, and nice lyrics too. Yes, the fact that the film deals mainly with Yossi's inner demons may scare away a lot of potential viewers, but this film is too good to pass up. If you're looking for a slow burning love story, this movie is just for you.