Mon trésor

To be perfectly honest, I found it more than slightly perplexing that an Israeli film, in Hebrew, is titled in the IMDb in its French title (in Hebrew, it's titled "Or", a semi-common name meaning "light). The film received impressive accolades at Cannes festival which may explain why France is a major market for this film.

"Or" (Dana Ivgy in a mesmerizing performance) is a teenager that spends the better part of her days on taking care of her mother, Ruthie (Ronit Elkabetz in an equally gut wrenching performance). Ruthie is a recovering (with varying levels of success) drug addict and barely adequate to take care of herself, let alone, support a family. That task is entirely in Or's responsibility and her odd jobs interfere with her educational agenda (which will turn out to be the least of her worries).

What Or is deprived in parenting, she compensates by casual flings with boys who, more often than not, exploit her good nature and a need to be loved for, well, you all know what men want.

Surprisingly enough, despite the harshness of Or's existence, she is a jubilant girl with a very strong bond with her mother and even manages to conduct a border line Friendship/Romance with a pensive classmate, Ido (Nesher Cohen).

Unfortunately (read: inevitably), old demons from the past threaten to shatter the already fragile family and when dubious character's appear on Or and her mother's dilapidating apartment, aided with the outright disapproval of Ido's family to his relationship with Or, the harsh existence calls for cutting corners solutions with devastating effects (which I can't reveal).

This movie is a minimalist movie with no camera movements, no voice over and no music of any kind. I believe it was meant to intensify the experience as opposed to refining it. If that was the objective of the director, it was accomplished fully largely to its raw direction and impressive acting. An objective that was compromised (or maybe unjustly low-prioritized) was depicting a subtle portrait of Or.

Subtlety is very rare commodity in this film. Extensive nudity, graphic sex scenes and other scenes that don't leave anything for imagination turn the already hard to absorb feature into a film that is profoundly gut wrenching but emotionally too disturbing to be enjoyed.

I should note, in the name of objectivity, that the extremely explicit nature of this film (a disturbing trait many Israeli films still hone) might not deter people with a less conservative standpoint than my own but even those of you who are less troubled by nudity, sex and blunt content in general, should expect a very difficult film to watch and for the privilege of a film pondered on long after the screening ends, one must prepare to pay for with a very unnerving viewing.

8 out of 10 in my FilmOmeter.

Or adeptly portrays the subjugation of both men and women to a misogynist culture, exposing the entrapment of violation and the many marks it leaves on women's bodies, the compulsion to move toward further violence, and men's complicity in this degradation of the body -- their own and women's. An heir to the works of important feminist thinkers (Andrea Dworkin, Susan Griffin, Adrienne Rich), this film pulls the viewer gently into an unabsorbable tirade and presents the question of the futility of human relations. Suffocating and bleak, set against an otherwise fairly banal landscape (and herein lies its strength), it doesn't shirk from exposing the underlay of the socially sanctioned pathology of male sexuality. In its insistent questioning, the film takes the viewer deep into the unresolvable, avoiding easy answers. The problem presented is devastating and Yedaya commits the viewer to sitting with their own unease, to touch, as it were, the very body of the film and face their own complicity in this unpardonable scheme.

There is a general impression in the minds of cinema goers that films about the taboo topic of prostitution are either too dark or to light. Most of the dark films about prostitution are known to have a sort of documentary touch to them whereas light films about prostitution invariably carry the hackneyed "all prostitutes are beautiful and they have a heart of gold" kind of message.For example: Irma La Douce directed by Billy Wilder and Never on Sunday directed by Jules Dassin. It is not so often that a different kind of film is made which can do justice to the depiction of this disturbing theme.Most of the films about prostitution need to have all the right ingredients in order to carry the proper message to viewers.This film by Keren Yedaya called "Or" is a unique film in the history of Israelian cinema.It is for the first time that the absurdist theme of prostitution has been boldly shown especially in the context of evils which disturb the human mind,body and soul.The film is a success as it depicts that the act of prostitution is a modern day evil which is closely associated with other roguish facets of modern age such as crime and drugs.Or can also be read as a sad tale of an irresponsible mother who is unable to take proper care of her daughter.The bizarre thing about this film is that towards its end the evil practice of prostitution is accepted by a person who was single handedly waging a fierce as well as a heroic battle against it.This is a hint to state that there is no possible end to the vicious circle of evil as circumstances even force a strong willed person to be a part of it.

A story about people, women, which strikes at the heart. A tale which explores the life of a prostitute, and her daughter destined to follow along her path. A camera which skirts around the bodies of the characters. A vision that is intimate, yet distant, non-judgmental. The wasting away of the female flesh, and the reflection of the daughter in the mother, the mother in the daughter. How hopes and dreams begin to whither in the face of circumstance, and how difficult day to day life can be. A beautiful film which elegantly avoid the banalities and triteness of any political statement, yet explores a subject which is inherently political. A must-see if nothing more than for the skillful and intelligent camera.

Great movie. Shows the maturity of Israeli cinema. If you're looking for a happy ending or Hollywood romance, don't bother watching this film. If you are looking for something deeper than that, you'll be fascinated throughout the movie. It's difficult to watch, but it's not difficult to follow. The director keeps your attention throughout the film. Veteran Israeli actor Ivgy's daughter is amazing in the role of Or, the daughter of a prostitute, played by the superb Ronit Alqabetz. Look out for Alqabetz in other great Israeli movies, like Late Marriage ("Mariage Tardif" in French). This is stark realism at its best. The moral message is powerful, but nuanced. Ruthie (the mother) comes across very much as much a victim of her own choices.