Hatufim

While 'Hatufim' is definitely worth being judged on its own merits, it probably will, for some time, always be compared to the US series that was based on this Israeli original... and after having viewed both series I'm confident in saying that 'Hatufim' doesn't have to shy away from the comparison. In fact, I think it is the superior show of the two.

Whereas 'Homeland' is clearly in the same vein as other US shows and boosts a fast pace, twists and turns and lots of action, 'Hatufim' is much more of a psychological thriller. On the surface much less happens than does in 'Homeland', but 'Hatufim' involves a lot more subtleties as well as realism and character study, especially in its 1st season.

The budget is only a portion of the US remake, but it seldomly shows. Great actors accompany an even better script that left me feeling a lot more involved than the fast pace and action of 'Homeland' did. In fact, Hatufim's 2nd season picks up in pace and action, but still keeps that intimate feeling and heart that 'Homeland' sometimes lacked.

'Homeland' is a very good series, but 'Hatufim' is, in my opinion, a great one.

The Israel series, Hatufim (Prisoners of War), which is all in Hebrew, is on DVD with English subtitles. It is one of the best TV dramas I have ever seen: tense, suspenseful, emotional, with superb acting and directing. Gritty and violent at times, wonderfully slow other times, and always dramatic; we usually wind up watching two episodes in a row. There are characters you like, others you don't, but you care about or are interested in all of them. The US version, Homeland, was taken from this Israeli original and is also excellently well done, but Hatufim is a lot different and stands entirely on its own; I think it's the better of the two. This powerful drama should be on everybody's watch list. A comment about the English subtitles: we found the same thing a reviewer on Amazon did -- the subtitles marked as English on the disc of season 2 (2012) for episodes 9-12 were only in Hebrew. On the advice of the seller, we tried the disc on our computer and (for reasons I cannot understand) the disc played with the English subtitles! The final episodes (13-14), like all the others except for that one disc, play fine on the DVD player.

Genuine, original drama, very mature writing and great performance by talented Israeli actors.

Memorable music and very mindful, slow-paced storytelling, somewhat reminiscent of the best works of Coen brothers.

Cinematography, on the other hand, is a bit amateurish, but in this specific case, it only help to recreate the "documentary" look and feel of the series.

PS: Honestly, I'm mot sure, why so many people compare this show to Homeland. Despite lush "Hollywood" production values, the later looks like a cheap plastic knockoff of the original series, all twists and cliffhangers, no real depth or character study whatsoever. Maybe the problem is the translation (or cultural differences?), I just happen to have lived in both US and Israel, so I could compare both shows as they are. POW is infinitely better, hands down.

I have never been more fascinated by a TV show. When I first watched it I went by the title alone and thought it was a documentary on POW in WW2. I was wrong

I found the whole show absolutely compelling. I have also watched Homeland but hated that show, it was just too unreal. This one, however, seemed as realistic as a story could get and the only thing that disappointed me was that there wasn't a third series.

The twists and stories were so clever and the characters, and their reactions to events, seemed so genuine and real unlike Homeland.

The script was brilliant, the direction superb and the acting so realistic.

Due to its location, past and present, Israel has definitely some specific aspects and issues not common to Western" countries to deal with, being at war with far bigger countries. Hardly anybody in e.g. Europe can imagine to be decades in prison under such circumstances and conditions. But life goes on, things change, yet the country´s integrity has to be protected, thus no returner can expect an absolutely warm and unconditional welcome.

All the above is skilfully presented, but script-wise and performance-wise, with explaining flashbacks and unexpected twists and turns included. I used to enjoy Season 2 more as it was more crime drama and with faster pace, although I can not say that Season 1 was static or somewhat tedious - perhaps the contrast with the past pleasant life and present instable existing was too painfully visible. All the cast is strong, forming a versatile aggregated whole, without nobody excelling at the expense of others.

PS I have also partially seen the US series Homeland, but they are largely different.