My sister is SOOOO going to be moving to Modi’in when she hears that on a regular basis Israeli films have premiere showings here. Last night, the director of a new Israel film (so new, it’s not yet showing up on Hebrew or English Google), came and spoke about film making and showed his film “Ben and Eli.”
His talk was very interesting, talking about how a well made film can encourage us to root for the scoundrel, even for the murderer. He spoke of how it was done and gave us a few examples. Clearly, he did it because it made us aware of our shifting loyalties in the film that he was presenting.
The film stars Lior Ashkenazi who is a well known Israeli actor who is easy on the eyes. It deals with the relationships of fathers and sons– chiefly his relationship with his son, but also his relationship with his father.
Eli, the son, is a mischievous redheaded schoolboy of about 12 years old. Ben is an architect and the city engineer of Herzliya. As the film progresses not only does their near idyllic relationship undergo changes, but so does Eli’s personality as he gains insights and experience in fairness, justice, truth, and human relationships.
All four if us agreed it was an entertaining film that engaged our minds as well as our senses. Four thumbs up.
