I actually saw this movie about a year ago. By the pathetic standards of the Israeli film industry, this one is not all that bad. There are some continuity and other technical problems and the story strains credibility, but the acting by completely irreligious actors is rather good - in the same way that actors who are not themselves wizards or hobbits play those characters well, too.

However, because the story and movie sprout from the deep well of Israeli hatred of things Jewish, it mis-portrays religious Jews and their beliefs and practices. The movie includes a confused scene trying to depict the uncommon Mitzvah of Shilu'ach HaKen, where the father chases away a mother bird for no reason, saying it is a mitzvah. As I recall, the S'char for Shilu'ach HaKen, as for Kibbud Av Va'Em, is Arichut Yamim. In the movie script, after the father chases away the bird it is the son who dies. It's all confused on Halacha and practice, at least on this point - which is germaine to the story.

Movie makers like to depict exotica, whether monsters from outer space, people in far away places or scenes from other times. For the Israeli ignorantsia, religious and especially Chareidi Jews are something distant, strange and from another time. Their being relatively accesible makes it relatively easy to make movies about them (finding real monsters from outer space is trickier...) and so Israeli films return to this theme again and again.

That the Tel Avivians have no idea what Jewish life is really like in Jerusalem, an hour's drive away, is sad, but not really that surprising. That they misrepresent Jewish life is more upsetting.
Jake in Jerusalem | 05.22.08 - 6:00 am | #

Jake, what are you drinking? David Volach the director was one of the dozen children in a Chareidy family and was later one of the masmidim in Ponevezh yeshivah. Before he went into film making.
Tzemach | Homepage | 05.22.08 - 7:44 am | #

ומה מתן שכרה של מצווה זו? שאם אין לך בנים אני נותן לך בנים. מנין? שנאמר: שלח תשלח את האם. ומה שכר אתה נוטל? ואת הבנים תיקח לך" (מדרש רבה, פרשת כי תצא)

Every Chareidi knows that...

And yes. The father chases the mother bird for NO reason. Well, u know... The Chareidi way twists Judiasm sometimes. That's part of the movie's point.

Btw Jake.. r u Chareidi? Were u?... Sad and upsetting...
einikel of a masmid | 05.28.08 - 12:21 pm | #