genevadavid

Twenty-four hours after seeing this extraordinary, multi-layered film about a boy who is airlifted out of Ethiopia and brought to Israel, I am still reviewing images in my mind and wondering at the courage and audacity that must have been necessary to bring this story to the screen.

Salomon was nine years old, living in a desperate refugee camp in Sudan. In late 1984, there was a covert Israeli-American operation to save Ethiopian Jews, known as Falashas, by airlifting them to Israel. The Falashas, are a small branch of the Diaspora. But as they lined up for their exodus, Salomon's mother tells him firmly to "go, live and become", the title of the movie. She saw in the exodus an opportunity for her son to escape the death, disease, famine and civil war that were ravaging Ethiopia. Salomon's mother would stay behind.

The trauma of being told by his mother to leave was already strong stuff. But there is more; Salomon is not even a Falasha. So the arrival in modern Israel is a double shock for him. However, Salomon becomes Schlomo, and we see that he is a quick learner. He learns Hebrew and, when he is adopted by a bi-lingual French-Hebrew family, he learns French, too.

However, Schlomo has a persistent and profound desire to see his mother again. He is wounded. On top of that injury, he has to deal with racism and bigotry in Israel, while hiding the fact that he is not a Falasha. Schlomo carries a lot of emotional baggage, but he has some good people rooting for him. Like the Yarom and Yael, the couple who adopt Schlomo, and Sara, the girl who has him firmly in her sights. The story of Schlomo's trials and tribulations is moving on several levels.

What makes this film audacious is that it confronts the question "who is a Jew". The answer is not self-evident. Indeed, the question has been the subject of impassioned debate in Israel for years. The Falashas are just one case study. It is simply remarkable that someone would make a film that touches on this issue. Bravo!

I haven't read David Benioff's novel, but I understand that the screenplay, also written by Benioff, is close to the book. With all due respect to Spike Lee, this isn't his story. But he is the one who runs with it by pulling together the actors, script, music, photography, etc., to make this a deeply moving and believable portrayal of someone who blew it and is about to pay the consequences. IMHO Spike Lee succeeds brilliantly with Benioff's material.

As I see it, this is a story about a group of people who have screwed up their lives to one degree or another. Of course, Monty has screwed up royally. So, in a smaller way, have Monty's father and Monty's friends, played by Barry Pepper and Philip Seymour Hoffman. Life is about making choices. And often those choices are the wrong ones. This story is about `could'a - should'a - would'a'. There's no happy end here.

Spike Lee's direction, Terence Blanchard's score, and the high-quality acting all combine to get the mood of this melancholy film just right. Twenty-four hours after watching the film, the mood is lingering. I like films that succeed in making you think, as this one does. Bravo!

When we meet Fatou, she is a beautiful, lively Parisian girl who is turning 18 and finishing high school. She works part-time at a hair salon and dreams of becoming a fashion designer. Fatou was born in Paris and has never been to Africa from where her parents came decades before.

At the family dinner table, the conversation turns to Fatou's post-graduation plans. She is ready to face the world, but she is told that she is not mature until she is married. Before she knows it, a husband (a cousin) is found and preparations are made for the wedding. When Fatou finds out that her marriage is arranged, she objects. However, the wheels of African tradition are in motion and cannot be stopped simply because Fatou is not ready yet. This is the set up for a heart-wrenching clash of cultures.

This film works because Fatou is fresh and full of life. She is completely believable. Meanwhile, her extended family expresses African traditions in the Parisian setting with firm conviction, colour and joy. Finally, the story works because the designated husband is not a bad person as such. From his point of view, he is exercising his traditional rights. There are some scenes that make one wonder about the value of tradition.

The film falls apart in the final ten minutes as it searches for an unlikely happy end. Fatou's predicament is not unusual in today's increasingly multi-racial and multi- cultural Europe. There are countless stories of young women caught between the requirements of family tradition and honour, and their own dreams and aspirations. All too often, they end unhappily or even tragically. Fatou presents the problem in a way that really makes one think.

Warning: Fatou and her girlfriends speak Parisian slang that would be a challenge for anyone not fluent in French.