Bikur Ha-Tizmoret is an Israeli/Arab film which tells the story of a classical Arab police music band from Alexandria which visits Israel for a performance. The band ends up "in the middle of nowhere" because of a mix-up in the name of the place they ask to reach. The story then centres on certain band members and their interactions while they stay overnight with Israeli hosts.
To its credit the film manages to steer clear of any detail of politics, with the characters difficulties with each other emerging from cultural differences and a certain wariness of strangers. The writers do not insult us by trying to explain why the Egyptians and the Israelis have difficulty communicating despite their shared border and history. In one scene a band member covers a picture of Israeli tanks with his cap, since he finds it difficult to eat his meal while looking at the picture - which is as poignant as it needs to be.
The cinematography is good and the film does a great job at capturing the arid and unpopulated landscape, and the essential boredom of life in a small town. The music, when allowed to flow, is beautiful and authentic. I was hoping for more of it.
The performance of the actors is very good, and Sasson Gabai shines as the charge of the band. Ronit Elkabetz as Dina is a great choice, and pulls of the independent, rough-yet-gentle young woman very well. The writers realise that in one night people's natures will not change, and so there are no great revelations or big changes, rather the characters behave more or less how we'd expect them to.
In essence, Bikur Ha-Tizmoret is a comedy, a character study, and an exploration of people's behaviour in unusual circumstances. However it just doesn't quite pull any one of these off very well. Parts of the film which should be funny, laugh-out-loud type, are too predictable to work. A good example is the scene where Simon is helping Papi with the shy girl at the skating rink - it's just too obvious what the director is trying to achieve. There are other examples of heavy-handed direction. Characters walk in and off stage in a contrived manner. Too often I felt I was watching people make-believe.
Despite the criticisms I make, Bikur Ha-Tizmoret is still a good film, interesting and unique, and definitely worth watching.
To its credit the film manages to steer clear of any detail of politics, with the characters difficulties with each other emerging from cultural differences and a certain wariness of strangers. The writers do not insult us by trying to explain why the Egyptians and the Israelis have difficulty communicating despite their shared border and history. In one scene a band member covers a picture of Israeli tanks with his cap, since he finds it difficult to eat his meal while looking at the picture - which is as poignant as it needs to be.
The cinematography is good and the film does a great job at capturing the arid and unpopulated landscape, and the essential boredom of life in a small town. The music, when allowed to flow, is beautiful and authentic. I was hoping for more of it.
The performance of the actors is very good, and Sasson Gabai shines as the charge of the band. Ronit Elkabetz as Dina is a great choice, and pulls of the independent, rough-yet-gentle young woman very well. The writers realise that in one night people's natures will not change, and so there are no great revelations or big changes, rather the characters behave more or less how we'd expect them to.
In essence, Bikur Ha-Tizmoret is a comedy, a character study, and an exploration of people's behaviour in unusual circumstances. However it just doesn't quite pull any one of these off very well. Parts of the film which should be funny, laugh-out-loud type, are too predictable to work. A good example is the scene where Simon is helping Papi with the shy girl at the skating rink - it's just too obvious what the director is trying to achieve. There are other examples of heavy-handed direction. Characters walk in and off stage in a contrived manner. Too often I felt I was watching people make-believe.
Despite the criticisms I make, Bikur Ha-Tizmoret is still a good film, interesting and unique, and definitely worth watching.