Jason...takes a hiatus

Some might notice I basically already have. Anyway, it was just about a year ago today that I rebooted, because 2016 just...broke me. Turns out this year has been just as hard. So I'm not even rebooting. I apologize to the remainder of Docfest, to the day I spent at Frameline (especially Julie Sokolow's excellent WOMAN ON FIRE,) to the Niles Film Museum, both for Charlie Chaplin Days (featuring the excellent insights and entertainment of Dan Kamin, the guy who taught Robert Downey, Jr. to play Chaplin) and for the Broncho Billy Silent Film Festival.

I especially apologize to my friends who made the hilarious webseries Doucheaholics. I had a great time at the premiere and after party, and if I can find some time in my hectic life, I really want to be part of season 2.

I apologize to the Silicon Valley Jewish Film Festival and to Another Hole in the Head, both playing right now and for the next couple of weeks. In fact, I'm emceeing Another Hole in the Head, so please come out and watch some horror films with me. And I'll be back at SVJFF for the end, just as soon as Holehead is over.

And I apologize to my readers (I hesitate to imagine I actually have fans) because I'm sure you were just dying to hear my insights about all these festivals as well as some feature films like SPIDER-MAN: HOMECOMING (very good, but missing a scene where the people of New York come to the rescue, which were the best parts of previouse Spider-Man movies) or WONDER WOMAN (awesome!!!!) or MOTHER! (yikes! Darren Aronofsky hates God, and isn't afraid to say it!) or BLADE RUNNER 2049 (Gorgeous, liked it, still processing what it's "about"--much like the first BLADE RUNNER.)

Anyway, this time I'm not even up for a reboot. This is a hiatus. I'm officially giving myself permission to walk away from this blog...until the New Year. See you in 2018. If something strikes me as especially noteworthy, I'll write about it on my Facebook and/or Twitter.

Of course, I'm still counting the minutes I spend watching movies.

My Total Minutes: 434,109

Jason goes to Jewfest South and sees ENCIRCLEMENTS

Last Tuesday was my last night at the SVJFF for this year (closing night is Sunday with THE OUTRAGEOUS SOPHIE TUCKER, but I'll be at another film festival by then.) The film, ENCIRCLEMENTS is a coming of age story in Israel. Aharon is a bar mitzvah boy, and a good student. Good enough that he wins a contest to be selected for the honor of carrying the Torah in the march around town on Simchat Torah. And this incites some jealousy in the brash, popular kid who thought the honor was all but his. And it does win him the attention of cute Aliza, whom he has a crush on. But most of all it brings the attention and desires of the whole town, who want him to pray for each of their personal desires while he is holding the Torah and communing with G-d. Which gets a little sketchy when his father asks him to pray for a little brother or sister, and his mother asks him to do no such thing (she's had several miscarriages and can't take it any more.) And then, while carrying the Torah, tragedy strikes. He drops it. And the aftermath of that makes up the second half of the movie, dealing with the painful realities of adult responsibilities that are...if not too big for a thirteen year old, at least pretty new to him. It's not even the dropping the Torah that's a big deal, it's the aftermath, how he deals with it (by fasting) and how the town reacts. A very smart film about what it means to be a thirteen year old adult.

And now, for the first time in months, I'm actually all caught up on this blog. My next festival--Another Hole in the Head--starts tomorrow.

Running Time: 98 minutes
My Total Minutes: 408,240

Jason goes to Jewfest South for FÉLIX AND MEIRA

This film featured the most chaste love affair ever (at least what they show on screen, it's never exactly clear if the cheating lovers actually...cheat.) Anyway, Félix and Meira live blocks away in Montreal but also worlds apart. Félix is a secular, charming guy who is mourning his father's death. Meira is a devoted orthodox Jewish wife, she just doesn't want to have any more children. And her marriage is basically dead--she simply doesn't love her husband anymore. And one day Félix...talks to Meira in a bakery. And they start a very innocent friendship. It's not about sex, it's about companionship of lonely people. Even if they're just talking, or sharing drawings, or playing ping pong, or dancing to Cuban music, or trying on blue jeans. Of course, this is enough to send shockwaves through the Hasidic community and incite her husband's jealous rage. A very subtle, remarkably poignant story.

Running Time: 105 minutes
My Total Minutes: 408,142

Jason goes to Jewfest South--November 1st

Yup, you thought it was all over, didn't you?! No, I just wasn't there for a week because all the movies I had previously seen. But I was back for three films on Sunday.

BELLE AND SEBASTIAN: First up was this beautiful film based on the beloved children's novel. Sebastian lives in the French Alps with his grandfather, while his mom is away in America (which he's told is just over those mountains.) A wild beast is attacking their sheep, but when Sebastian comes face-to-face with it, it turns out she's actually a giant dog who was abused by her former owner but is actually a good dog (and wasn't the one attacking the sheep.) Naming her Belle (Beautiful) they become quite a team, hiding out from both the villagers and the occupying Germans who still believe in the beast. Oh yes, this is set during WWII, and in fact smuggling Jewish refugees into Switzerland is a major part of the plot. And of course Belle eventually wins everyone over, and becomes known as the bravest dog ever. Pretty beautiful.

A BORROWED IDENTITY (aka DANCING ARABS): Then there was this comedic drama written by Sayed Kashua (creator of ARAB LABOR, one of my favorites of Israeli television, who was in attendance and talked about his writing, the movie, and his decision to move to America, where he teaches in At the University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign.) The story is about Ayed, a brilliant Palestinian boy living in Israel (and an Israeli citizen.) His father beams with pride when he gets accepted into a prestigious math and science school. Of course, being a Palestinian minority in Israel has...difficulties fitting in, to say the least. But he makes two very important friends--first a Jewish girlfriend, Naomi. But they have to keep their relationship kind of secret. Jews don't like the idea of dirty Arabs touching their women. And there's no way either of their parents would approve. But love is what it is. And the other important friend in Yonatan, a young Israeli Jew who is suffering from muscular dystrophy. He first helps him out as part of his community service assignment, but they quickly become fast friends. And they even look kind of similar. Similar enough at least on their ID cards that Ayed can use Yonatan's ID and pass as a Jew. Which leads to the title, of course. The film is sometimes very funny, sometimes very serious, but always excellent and a great way to approach the social troubles of the whole...situation there.

ZEMENE: And then we ended the night on a truly heroic, uplifting note. Dr. Rick Hodes is an American Jewish doctor who works in Ethiopia. With very little resources in the entire country, much less the rural villages, he treats all types, but specializes mostly spinal deformity cases. Birth defects of the spine as well as tuberculosis create a heck of a lot of horrible disfigured spines. And Dr. Hodes takes care of as many as he can, including opening his home to his patients and even formally adopting some so he can add them to his insurance plan. And we see his practice through the story of Zemene, a young girl with a deformed spine whose uncle has taken her to the city for treatment (with no luck) but who meets Rick entirely by coincidence. She starts off as one of the most hopeless cases--not just deformed by badly malnourished and undersized. But she responds to care, puts on some weight, and is soon (at least soon in movie time) is a good candidate for surgery. And while Rick doesn't do the surgeries himself, he has colleagues that are the best in the business. That surgery puts Zemene on a truly inspiring, miraculous path. Not just to health, but to school, to opportunity, to the dream of becoming a doctor herself and opening up a school in her village. That's the best part--not just saving lives but truly lifting people up through education.

Afterwards we had a Skype conversation with Dr. Rick Hodes. And here's the most important thing I can pass on from that: he has a website where you can follow his work and donate to help save and lift up more children.

Total Running Time: 276 minutes
My Total Minutes: 408,037

Jason goes to Jewfest South for GETT: THE TRIAL OF VIVIANNE AMSALEM

So after the Creature Features show in Niles, I had to race down to the AMC Saratoga for the last movie of the night at SVJFF.

Based on a true story, in order to understand this movie you have to know a little bit about orthodox Jewish divorce law. I might recommend SENTENCED TO MARRIAGE, which played at SVJFF back in 2007. The upshot is in order to get divorced, the man must give the woman a Gett--basically a written document of divorce. And if he doesn't, they aren't divorced. And there's not a whole lot the courts can do if he refuses (3,000 years ago the solution was to beat the crap out of him until he complied. That's been dropped as barbaric, but the whole law of the Gett has not.) I could have sworn this movie was based on a true story, but I haven't found confirmation of that. In any case, it can certainly be based on the fact that there are occasionally women trapped in loveless marriages who are unable to convince their husbands to divorce. And that's the case with Viviane, who already lives away from her husband, who makes her own living as a hairdresser, and who has to fight for 3 years with her husband's intransigence (it's months before he even agrees to show up in court) and then a humiliating process that is stacked against her, humiliates her, questions her character, tries to force her to stay with him, and in the end...has no power to force him to comply when they actually do rule for her. For a drama that is all in a courtroom with people talking, there's no way it should be as dramatic, gripping, and moving as it is. But it is, that's the magic of a good story well told.

Running Time: 115 minutes
My Total Minutes: 407,438

Jason Goes to Jewfest South--October 24th

A double feature a couple of Saturdays ago.

First up was L'CHAIM (AUF DES LEBENS) a German film about Ruth, an aging retired cabaret singer who is forced out of her apartment and moved into a place she hates. Young Jonas, one of the movers who helped her, reminds her of an old love, one that we find had a tragic outcome way back in the post-WWII days. After Jonas saves her from a suicide attempt, in a pretty harrowing scene (I admit, I hate the old slitting-the-wrists-in-the-bathtub scene, it always freaks me out) they form a bit of a friendship, and we learn things about Jonas, too. Like that he's running away from his lover for some mysterious reason (which is revealed in the end.) So much of the movie relies on the big reveals at the end that it's hard to give it a fair review without spoilers. But I'll say that the acting is great, the characters compelling, and the reveals at the end more than satisfying. A good story about...well, life.

And then FRANK VS. GOD, a comedy that seems inspired by a play on the phrase "to serve God." David Frank is having a bad life. His wife died in a car crash and he has never gotten over it. He quit his lucrative lawyer career and the only thing keeping him going is his loyal dog and his niece who adores him. Oh yeah, and she's dying of cancer. And when he's away visiting her, a hurricane hits town and destroys his house with his dog inside it. And to top it all off, his insurance company won't give him a dime, calling it an "act of God." So he decides to sue God. A judge with political aspirations allows it so he can be the courageous judge who protected God (wouldn't throwing the case out as laughable be a better way to do that? I guess then it wouldn't even get in the news.) Well, it turns out Frank is a hell of a litigator (no pun intended) and he gives--well, if not God, at least his earthly defenders--quite a fight. Lest you think this is a gleefully wicked movie for angry-at-God atheists, it's not. There's good laughs in it, but it's ultimately a sort of comic romp through comparative religions, and a romantic comedy (that would break all ethics rules about socializing with the opposition) with a bit of a deus ex machina ending, which seems kind of appropriate.

Total Running Time: 186 minutes
My Total Minutes: 407,197

Jason Goes to Jewfest South for DELI MAN

A couple of Thursdays ago, a real crowd-pleaser of a light-hearted documentary about the most delicious Jewish tradition--the deli. Actually, that's a Jewish-American tradition, the deli wasn't originally about food from the motherland. In fact, delis weren't originally associated with Jews. Jews coming to America adopted and adapted the tradition (as they did with so many other things) and made it their own. And the film follows deli owners, their hard work, long hours, razor-thin margins (and slices of fish) as they make a living. It's certainly not for everyone, but for the people in the movie it's the only way of life for them. Many are in New York, but the star Ziggy Gruber opened and operates the best deli in Houston, TX, Kenny & Ziggy's. There's a melancholy tone to the film when it touches on how in the heyday there were delis on every corner of New York and now there's only a handful in the entire nation. It's an institution that is slowly disappearing, but one that's worth savoring while it's still around.

Running Time: 91 minutes
My Total Minutes: 407,011

Jason Goes to Jewfest South for FAREWELL HERR SHWARZ

The SVJFF marched on. This one was a documentary about family separation, and eventually reunion...sort of.

The separation was due to the Holocaust. Michla and Feiv'ke were brothers and sisters, both Holocaust survivors, but never reunited after the war. Both thought the other was dead. Michla moved to Israel, while Feiv'ke stayed in East Germany, very near the concentration camp, and married a German girl, putting the path behind him. For half a century the German and Israeli sides of the family didn't know about each other. But now their respective grandchildren are getting to know each other. Of course, there's a strong anti-German feeling in the Israeli side of the family, and that's the source of a great amount of stress. But I choose (and the younger generation chooses) to be optimistic and see this as a story of a family that was separated but found their way back together. It's complicated, but ultimately joyful.

Running Time: 97 minutes
My Total Minutes: 406,920

Jason goes to Jewfest South--Monday, Oct 19

Two films, as the festival moved from the Oshman Family JCC to the AMC Saratoga

THEODORE BIKEL: IN THE SHOES OF SHOLOM ALEICHEM. Full of witty Yiddish humor, Theodore Bikel himself (who passed away back in July) traces his career in parallel with that of Sholom Aleichem. A consummate storyteller, telling the story of another consummate storyteller. What's not to love? Through stories, performance, interviews, archival footage we get not one, but two life stories of people who have kept the Yiddish experience and wit alive.

ORANGE PEOPLE. A family tale of three generations of Moroccan Israelis. Modernity and tradition clash in bright colors (mostly orange, of course.) Grandmother Zohora serves as sort of a narcoleptic oracle, falling asleep and waking up with visions and advice. Her daughters don't have the gift, instead channeling their energy into cooking, although with widely varying styles. But her granddaughter might have the gift. And might even use it, if she weren't so modern. The story unfolds slowly and naturally, we learn of the trauma in Zohora's past (it's revealed early on that she was forced into marriage at a young age, but only later do we learn the extent of the trauma) and the tension that brings to the battle of tradition/mysticism vs. modernity is mostly what drives the movie. That and a gorgeously shot, interesting subculture in Israel.

Total Running Time: 168 minutes
My Total Minutes: 406,823

Jason goes to Jewfest South for ANYWHERE ELSE

Noa is an Israeli grad student studying linguistics in Berlin. Her thesis project is a video dictionary of "untranslatable words" i.e., words that mean something very specific in one language that doesn't translate directly to other ones. Seems simple and engaging enough, but not to her thesis committee. So left with the prospect of going back to the drawing board, her strained relationship with her German boyfriend, and just a general sense that things are working right, she moves back home to Israel for some time. But that doesn't necessarily fix anything either. The relationship with her family, and particularly how her originally decision to study in Germany, is the focal point of the film. And later, when her boyfriend Jörg decides to visit her, that becomes the focal point for a while. It's a character study and endearing family drama, and Neta Riskin does a great job in the central role.

Running Time: 87 minutes
My Total Minutes: 406,655

Jason goes to Jewfest South for 24 DAYS

Umm...that's not how long I was there, that's the name of the movie

Anyway, I knew I was in for something unusual and harrowing when I spied the name Alexandre Aja (HIGH TENSION, THE HILLS HAVE EYES remake, PIRANHA 3D) as assistant director in the credits. I'll take a wild guess that he filmed the more brutal, bloody, and shocking scenes.

Anyway, the movie is based on a true story of a young Jewish man who was kidnapped seemingly at random and held for ransom. And the title refers to  how long he was held, and tortured, until he was let go in the woods and eventually died of his injuries. But it's also the story of his family, especially his mother, trying to cooperate with the police and their fruitless efforts at investigating and negotiating with the kidnappers. And, oh yeah, the kidnappers were a Muslim gang and there's the difficult issue of whether or not the kidnapping was motivated by religious hatred. In fact, that's kind of a major plot point. In any case, it's a tense, brutal, and brilliantly made movie. One I appreciate but sort of wish didn't have to be made (or at least didn't include the "based on a true story" label.)

Running Time: 108 minutes
My Total Minutes: 406,568

Jason goes to Jewfest South for THE FAREWELL PARTY

My second day at the film festival was actually a Monday, after skipping Sunday because I had seen or could see elsewhere all the movies that day.

THE FAREWELL PARTY is a moving and interesting Israeli geriatric tale. An elderly couple live in a retirement home, devoted to each other and to their friends. But a challenging decision threatens their happy lives. And let's be blunt about it--it's a terminally ill friend who wants help ending his life. Over here in California, we recently passed a right-to-die law after some controversy. I don't know the legal situation is Israel, but the moral situation is I'm sure equally complex. But the movie handles the decision, and the aftermath, with a rare mix of humor and pathos that is almost unheard of in American films but seems to find it's way pretty easily into any number of foreign films. And I like that. I wish American films would be as bold as this.

Running Time: 95 minutes
My Total Minutes: 406,460

Jason goes to Jewfest South--Opening Night

So, just as SVJFF is about to wind down for another year, I finally get around to writing about opening night. And what a night it was.

EAST JERUSALEM, WEST JERUSALEM is a studio "making of" documentary about a really remarkably recording project. David Broza is a world renowned musician and humanitarian (and, rather sheepishly, I admit I had never heard of him before.) The movie follows his process of collaborating with musicians around the world to make the titular album in a recording studio in East (i.e., Palestinian) Jerusalem. His Israeli, Spanish, and English influences meld with the Palestinian and American influences of his friends and collaborators, and makes for a beautiful experience. It's not a solution to the conflict there, but at least an oasis from it, and some of the most beautiful and moving scenes are just him and his friend and cameraman sitting on the roof chatting. A nice way to start the festival, and kind of left me wondering how the rest of the festival would live up to that (don't worry, it's been fine.)

And then afterwards we were treated to a live David Broza concert, which included a young Palestinian musician as a surprise guest (I forgot his name. Sorry that's what happens when you wait sever weeks to write up an event.) It was pretty amazing, and in just a few hours I went from knowing nothing about David Broza to being a fan.

Running Time: 80 minutes
My Total Minutes: 406,365

Jason goes to Jewfest South--Closing Night

And the festival ended with a bang, with WHEN COMEDY WENT TO SCHOOL. A labor of love about the Catskills, the famous mountain resort area with luxury hotels and especially stand-up comedy. And especially especially, Jewish comedians. The documentary spends as little time as required to tell the history of the Catskills and tell a little bit about the environment, and leaves as much room as possible for the comedians. Jerry Lewis, Larry King, Sid Caesar, Jackie Mason, Jerry Stiller, Mel Brooks, Buddy Hackett (and his son Sandy, also a stand-up comedian, who was there for the film and warmed up the audience before and continued entertaining the audience after.) And, of course, with so many comedians doing their best work (or at least, the best that was caught on video back in the day) you have a pretty amazingly funny movie, that fills packed despite it's rather crisp (75 minutes) running time.

After the show, Larry King appeared via Skype. It might seem he's an odd choice to represent a film about comedians, but he interviewed most of the comedians at some time in their lives and he's a very funny man himself (I still remember his story about getting an "honorary police chief" certificate and then getting stopped by a cop. After the cop told him what he could do with it the punchline was "I'm glad they didn't give me a plaque!")

And, as I already mentioned, Sandy Hackett was there and was hilarious. Director Ron Frank was there as well, and they all had a great conversation and Q&A session (I won't get into the story of the woman who had a long-standing crush on Larry King, but that was a hilarious and kinda awkward part of the evening.)

What a great way to end another fantastic festival.

Running Time: 75 minutes
My Total Minutes; 374,020

Jason goes to Jewfest South--Wednesday, Nov 12

A PLACE IN HEAVEN is a story that spans the early days of Israel all the way up to today. When an old general passes away, his estranged, ultra-orthodox son travels to talk to a rabbi who knew him way back when. It turns out when the general was a heroic soldier, the young cook who would become a rabbi idolized him. He thought such heroism guaranteed the soldier an anointed place in heaven. The soldier isn't religious, so he offers to sell him his place. They write up a contract to make it nice and legal--a place in heaven in exchange for his favorite food, every day for a month. The breadth of the story is told through the flashbacks of both the rabbi and the son. And the general's life is as tumultuous and morally complex as the history of Israel. And his career advancements take their toll on his family life. And by the end you wonder if he has any place in heaven left, while the rabbi certainly has his own. It's an interesting way to look back at a life, both the life of the general and the life of the nation.

Running Time: 118 minutes
My Total Minutes: 373,677

Jason goes to Jewfest South--Monday, Nov 10

THE WONDERS is a strange little Jerusalem mystery about religion and cartoons. Okay, it's not really about cartoons, it's just one of the heroes is a slacker cartoonist whose creations come to life for a few seconds, in an amusing running special effect. That would be Arnav, who is drawn into an intrigue involving a famous messianic rabbi who is being held captive in an abandoned apartment near him. A hard-boiled detective ripped right out of film noir is involved, as is a beautiful redhead (who turns out to be the rabbi's sister. The plot twists and turns over the question of whether the imprisoned rabbi is a good guy or a bad guy. Is he truly a prophet? Is he a con-man who is bilking his followers out of millions? And who is keeping him there, and why? Unfortunately, I was far more keyed in on the cartoons coming to life, and kept waiting for it to turn into something more like WHO FRAMED ROGER RABBIT so I didn't really pay close enough attention to the main plot. So this might be one that I'd enjoy a lot more on a second viewing.

Running Time: 112 minutes
My Total Minutes: 373,559

Jason goes to Jewfest South--Sunday, Nov 9

I'm falling behind on my blog again. Anyway, a week ago Sunday was a musical night at the Camera 12!

First up was the long-ish short, THE LADY IN ROOM 6: MUSIC SAVED MY LIFE, the winner for best documentary short at the last Oscars. Alice Herz Sommer is was 109 years old at the time of the movie (she passed away last February at 110.) She was a Holocaust survivor and pianist who played the piano every day in her London flat. She speaks about a love for life and music, and how her music kept her going through the Holocaust.

That was paired with THE RETURN OF THE VIOLIN, a documentary about...well a violin, but a whole lot more. We start with a beautiful 1713 Stradivarius. Then we put it in the hands of a Polish Jew and musical prodigy Bronislaw Huberman. Then bring on the Holocaust. And watch Huberman save as many Jewish musicians as possible by forming the Palestine Orchestra, which later becomes the Israel Philharmonic. Now have that violin stolen from a New York hotel. And years later have it bought at auction by prodigy Joshua Bell, who returns to Israel and plays it once again with the Israel Philharmonic. Now frame that whole story in the recollections of Holocaust survivor, successful businessman, and philanthropist Sigmund Rolat. What you have is a loving portrait of survival, and the beauty of the continuity that great musical tradition brings.

Then for the next show, we moved on from classical music and the Holocaust to pop music and modern Israel. CUPCAKES is a piece of light-hearted fun from Eytan Fox (THE BUBBLE, YOSSI & JAGGER.) A group of Israeli best friends gather to watch the UniverSong contest, where Israel is a heavy underdog. And for good reason, the goofball, overproduced pop song is just...awful. So to cheer themselves up--and especially for a friend whose husband just left her--they improvise their own song on the spot. And they record it. And next thing you know it's a sensation and their representing Israel in the next UniverSong. Highly unlikely, and leading to scandals private, public, political, and hilarious (I couldn't think of another p word.) After a few hiccups with the local organizing committee that wants to turn them into another cheesy, overproduced, ridiculously costumed novelty act, they decide to go it alone with their simple, heartfelt song. And it's pretty funny and charming.

Total Running Time:193 minutes
My Total Minutes: 373,447

Jason goes to Jewfest South--Wednesday Nov. 5

This time I got there just in time, so no time to have a few beers and fall asleep. In fact, I ran, Jason, ran to see RUN BOY RUN at the Camera 7. Were it not based on a true story, this movie would be too unbelievable. Nine year old Srulik, a Polish Jew, runs from the Nazis and lives for weeks at a time with a series of kind farmers under the assumed name of Jurek Staniak. He rarely stays for more than a few weeks or months--either neighbors turn him in as a Jew (to get the reward) or the Germans start sniffing around anyway (his explanation that an infection and amputation is the reason he's circumcised never seems to work.) On more than one occasion people call Srulik/Jurek the bravest person they've ever met, and through the entire thrilling, sometimes harrowing movie, it's hard to argue. And a coda at the end with the grown up real-life Srulik is pretty wonderful.

Running Time: 107 minutes
My Total Minutes: 372,547

Jason goes to Jewfest South--Monday Nov. 3

Just one movie last Monday, I was down at the Camera 7 for the French FOR A WOMAN based loosely on director Diane Kurys' family history.

But first...I got there a little early, so I had dinner and a couple of beers at Rock Bottom brewery. Then I struggled to follow/stay awake for the movie. I could tell it jumped back and forth from the 80s to the immediate post-war period, and it featured the return of a long lost brother who was thought to have died in the war. And then I got kinda lost. So maybe I shouldn't even count it as a movie I have seen, but a friend whose opinion I trust--and who was sober and well rested through the movie--assured me that he was also confused and I didn't miss much. So...I guess that's that.

Running Time: 110 Minutes
My Total Minutes: 372,440

Jason goes to Jewfest South--Sunday, Nov 2

Three more movies last Sunday (hey, I'm only a week behind now!)

First up was a special free screening (Although as a pass holder, all screenings are free to me) of BRAVE MISS WORLD, a kinda brutal but kinda strangely uplifting documentary about Linor Abargil, Miss Israel of 1998 who went on to win the Miss World pageant. But what very few people knew at the time was she had been raped by her business manager just a couple months before. It took her a decade to be able to talk about it (other than at the trial.) And when she did, she became a powerful activist (that's the uplifting part.) The movie features her work around the world (most memorably South Africa, known as the rape capital of the world) and interviews from several rape survivors, including Fran Drescher and Joan Collins. It's a very powerful movie, sad and sobering while also giving the audience a compelling hero doing great work.

Well, after that I needed something fun, so I caught HUNTING ELEPHANTS, an Israeli bank heist comedy that I missed when it played at Cinequest. Jonathon's father is the head of security at a bank, but when the security system traps him inside during a heart attack, Jonathon can only watch as he dies. And because Jonathon wasn't supposed to be there, he doesn't even get the death benefits from the bank. So Jonathon's mother starts dating the bank manager (Moshe Ivgy, arguably the greatest actor in Israeli history, taking a more lighthearted role than usual.) And Jonathon spends more time in the care of his crotchety grandfather, a veteran freedom-fighter. And then none other than Patrick Stewart shows up (his introduction is pretty fantastic) as an aging actor and alleged heir to a fortune who is actually (SPOILER!) flat broke (END SPOILER.) Anyway, wacky hijinx ensue, and it's all inevitably leading to the gag of a 12 year old and a trio of geriatrics trying to rob a bank. And I won't bother telling you whether or not they succeed, you'll just have to find it yourself and watch it.

And finally, UNDER THE SAME SUN is a story of two businessmen trying to cross the Israel-Palestinian divide. Set in the near future, the two businessmen come up with an idea to install solar power in the Palestinian territories, freeing them from the Israeli power grid. But knowing the stigma against working with the other side, they both do most of their work in as much secret as possible. But when news gets out, things go to hell. It's an interesting look at the difficulty of people trying to cooperate across nearly impossible divides.

Total Running Time: 285 minutes
My Total Minutes: 372,330