The Holy Land

i almost missed this gem of a movie. a number of critics have damned it with faint praise. fortunately, a lawyer friend of mine, Mike, had no particular interest in anything else currently showing. so, he agreed to see it with me, because it would count as "my pick" -- meaning that he would have the next pick.

"The Holy land" is a coming of age story. but the protagonist, Mendy, is not just any run-of-the-mill naif. he is a rabbinical student in Tel Aviv, and the scion of a line of ultra-orthodox rabbis. his family is wonderfully wholesome, while Mendy is unbearably horny. the head rabbi at his yeshiva, noting Mendy's inability to concentrate on his studies, cites a passage in the Talmud (while denying that he is advising it) that states that a young man who visits a professional female companion will come away more focused on his religious studies.

Mendy does not need to have his arm twisted. soon he finds a strip joint, goes in, meets the charming and beautiful Sasha, and falls in love with her. through Sasha he meets Mike, a larger than life character who owns a bar in Jerusalem where stock Arab and Jewish characters seamlessly mix in a sort of bizarre version of "Cheers".

it is a timeless story about the conflict in the soul of every young adult (who has a pulse) between the idealistic pull from above to transcend our human nature, and the tug from below to experience the pleasures of the flesh precisely at that point in life when we are most able to enjoy them. having been raised as an ultra-orthodox Jew, Mendy has grown up in a culture second to none in its seriousness about avoiding the distractions of the secular world. yet, as an intelligent and sensitive young man, Mendy can't help but be elated by seeing the maps in an atlas, to give just one example of how sheltered his life had been before then.

Oren Rehany deserves an Oscar for his performance as Mendy. he wordlessly conveys more emotion with the expressions on his face than most actors can deliver in a full blown soliloquy. Tchelet Semel, as Sasha, is not just "the girl". she's a fully developed character, with youth, beauty, and a mother back in Russia who needs money to pay for heat in the winter.

and, all of this takes place against the backdrop of Jerusalem -- site of the world's longest running battle for the soul of man. so, what's the catch? the catch is that you can't dramatize the conflict between the sacred and the profane if you leave out the profane. and, if you love Israel, you may feel uncomfortable with a film that spends so much time on the dark side of life there, especially the IDF's routine treatment of Palestinians. (who wouldn't be uncomfortable seeing the warts of one's beloved displayed on the big screen?) but, if you can get beyond that, this movie is well worth seeing.

oh, Mike was very grateful that i picked this movie ;-)

No point retelling the plot. The plot is not that important. This film shows true life. Warts and all. The director is not trying to take sides (Arab or Jew), he is not trying to lecture anybody. He just shows a snapshot of life in Israel. He is showing interaction between different people of different backgrounds. The actors are not very known, but all play very well. Acting is superb and the action is completely unpredictable. It is not a "Hollywood" movie so do not expect a typical formula with a happy end. This is a must see important film.

PS: Somebody complained in here about kids used as suicide bombers. In fact this does happen. I remember in the press about a year ago they caught a 13 year old boy all rigged up with bombs at a border crossing. There were hundreds of suicide bombings and attempted bombings. Whether this ruins somebody comfortable theory of this conflict or not, this is the fact of life.

I watched "Holy Land" (first time, on DVD). Enjoyed it. Watched "Leaving Las Vegas" couple of days later (first time, on DVD). And realized there is something in common. To avoid spoilers I will not specify similarities, but invite you to take a look and think for yourself whether you agree or disagree with me.

I liked "Holy Land" (8/10). Pace is generally good. It is slow in comparison with action, but, well, it is not action. Director is not insulting intelligence of viewers by explaining things too much, and I believe there are certain things (like true feelings of Sasha, for example) that you can only guess. Story grows like a tree, not telephone pole, with many branches going nowhere, adding credibility (Hints of Mike's life and current business, for example).

Finally, I want to notice, that movie set in Israel.

Themes of love and trust, played out against a backdrop the horror of which doesn't become clear until the film's final moments, are told in a way that never becomes as predictable as anticipated. Who is the one who really loves? Who is the one who is really honest? This is that increasingly rare jewel: a thought-provoking movie. It is impossible that anyone who actually watches the movie as it unfolds could conclude that it is pro-Palestinian.

Billy Joel wrote "only the good die young" in one of his songs, and that is the upshot of this movie. Ending with a bang, and not a whimper, Mr. Eitan Gorlin's first and only directorial effort gives a downbeat perspective on righteousness, as the Yeshiva student gets his seemingly unjust reward for attempting to go straight. Or is it that he should have been less cynical and married the girl, and it is his running away that is being punished? At any rate, what with settlements being given over to Palestinians, protesters vs. Israeli army confrontations in the news, this interesting film is one of the few (perhaps only) film depictions of Israel today that I can bring to mind. The idea of citizens running free, carrying AR-15s or AR-16s is little wild to the average American. That hitchhiking is not, apparently, in the realm of Science Fiction in this bloody, Holy Land, is yet encouraging, however.

On a personal note, the actor playing Mendy, Mr. Oren Rehany, seemed remarkably similar to another Oren I had met in life, and before viewing the movie, I checked the image on the DVD box against the photo on the web page of the Oren I am familiar with. I find it plausible that the Oren I met, years before, is more likely the Oren Rehany under a different name, that that the photos of the individual at his nominal web page are truly him.