West Bank Story

I was fortunate to have seen this film at the Santa Cruz Film Festival this year and it was fantastic!! Humor, political satire, song, what's not to love? I was especially impressed with the quality of the writing - very sharp and funny- and the acting and film-making overall. Really well done and thoroughly entertaining. I expected to see some familiar names in the credits, say Spielberg or some such, but was surprised to learn it was a student film from USC. Top notch production quality and talent. The story line was so true to the Shakespearean plots in Romeo and Juliet (and West Side Story) but with a modern twist and sensibilities. Very timely political spin on the tensions of the West Bank. I will be looking for this on DVD as well as watching for new projects from this creative team. A must see!

West Bank Story is a truly creative and original short film, retelling the tale of West Side Story in the context of the Middle East. Specifically, two neighboring fast-food restaurants in the West Bank - one Jewish and one Arab.

As a musical, well, let's just call it a comedy, since the musical numbers are funnier than they are musically brilliant. But hey, it's a spoof, and social satire, and on both counts West Bank Story does really well.

The film does a great job of making fun of both "sides" equally. The satire manages to be both good-natured and poignant, fearless yet never heavy. There are many good in jokes that those who have spent time in the West Bank will appreciate if you watch closely, such as the green line separating the two sides in a split-screen moment...

Yes, it's wall-to-wall stereotypes here, but... can't we have a little fun with this? I can't imagine that having a sense of humor could make things any worse. And laughter has a healing power, so enjoy the good medicine in West Bank Story.

Ari Sandel was a film student when he directed and co-wrote this amazing short film. Despite this less than impressive pedigree, the film ended up winning the Oscar for Best Live Action Short Film for 2006 and is among the best shorts I have ever seen--and I've seen a lot!! Considering the title, it wasn't too surprising that this film is a gentle and funny parody of WEST SIDE STORY. However, instead of being set in New York, it's on the West Bank and instead of the Sharks and Jets, the two warring groups are Palestinians and Jews. Despite the seriousness of the problems in Israel and the occupied territories, I was happily surprised that the film was NOT heavy-handed and it was in fact very, very funny. It was a gentle spoof of the problems and hatreds and unless someone is a humorless idiot, there is a lot to love in the film.

Of course there is a girl and a boy (just like in Romeo and Juliet) caught in the struggle--but instead of Capulettes and Montagues or Sharks and Jets, it's a struggle between rival fast food joints--the Kosher King and the Hummus Hut! The hats, the dialog, the songs all work together perfectly to create the mood and pull the viewer into the film.

Not at all surprisingly, this film won the Oscar but I also felt a bit sad for the losers that year, as HELMER & SON and ONE TOO MANY were also amazingly good (and funny) short films.

My advice is to see all of these films--they are included in the DVD "A Collection of 2006 Academy Award Nominated Short Films"--a must-have for fans of the genre. Also, keep your eye out for Ari Sandel--that guy is going places and I can't wait to see what he does next! 10 out of 10--my very highest rating.

This parody of "West Side Story" has a fabulous opening which I suppose would be even more hilarious to anyone who is familiar with the 1961 movie. Not ever watching that film, except for a few clips, I couldn't appreciate the parody in here. However, humor is humor and good singing is good singing and there is a lot of both in this 21-minute short. Considering the topic, it is not a shock it won the Academy Award for Best Short Film/Live Action in 2006.

Simply put, we have competing fast-food restaurants on the West Bank: one Jewish, one Arabic. You have the "Kosher King" eatery on one side and the "Hummus Hut" on the other. Some of the signs in each establishment are clever ("The Chosen Restaurant") and some of lyrics sung by the "help" will make you laugh. There almost is too much to digest in a short period. One would have to view this several times to get all the jokes in the first few minutes.

Unfortunately, the rest of the film - the bulk of it - can't match that fantastic beginning. Things settle down when the romantic songs start and the rest of the story is romance and "peace" between the two long-time enemies. It gets very cliché-like and predictable.....too much so, to the point of being sappy.

This film is hilarious! I just returned from the Sundance Film Festival, which is where I saw the film, and it got a great response from everyone in the audience. The cheers at the end were so loud, I was actually expecting a standing ovation. I attended the festival as an intern with the co-founders of the Harry M. Warner Film Institute. We're holding our first annual film festival this spring, and we went out to Sundance to see some films and get some more experience with festivals in general. After this show, both of my supervisors were so impressed that they approached the director of this film to see if he would be willing to submit a film to our festival. If you haven't seen this film yet, you are definitely missing out.