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Lemon Tree (Etz Limon)

Directed by: Eran Riklis

Cast: Hiam Abbass, Rona Lipaz-Michael, Ali Suliman

Running Time: 1 hr 45 mins

Rating: Unrated

Release Date: June 5, 2009

Plot: When the Israeli Defense Minister moves in next to a woman’s lemon grove, the Secret Service determines it must be cut down for national security, but Salma Zidane (Abbass) refuses to allow that to happen. She takes her neighbors to court in an effort to preserve her trees, which make up her livelihood as well as a connection to her past.

Who’s It For? You don’t have to be interested in Israeli/Palestinian politics to enjoy this film. It’s for anyone who likes a well thought out drama.

Expectations: I expected a slow melodrama about the inability of Israelis and Palestinians to get along.

Scorecard (0-10)

Actors:

Hiam Abbass as Salma Zidane: Abbass does an excellent job as a widow who...

Winner of the Audience Award at the Berlin Film Festival and Best Actress prize (Hiam Abbass) at the Israeli Film Academy Awards, Lemon Tree is Eran Riklis' (The Syrian Bride, Cup Final) engaging human drama of one woman's struggle to preserve her way of life in the midst of political turmoil. The wonderful Hiam Abbass (The Visitor) is Salma, a Palestinian widow who earns her living tending to her late father's lemon grove. When an Israeli government minister moves next door and declares the grove a potential security threat, Salma struggles to defend her peaceful livelihood. Personal drama gives way to political controversies as Salma forms an unexpected bond with the minister's lonely wife (Rona Lipaz-Michael), and takes her protest - with the help of her young lawyer (Ali Suliman, Paradise Now) - all the way to the Israeli Supreme Court..