Category Archives: movies

a soap opera about a soap opera about the conflict (Film: Tel Aviv on Fire – Sameh Zoabi, 2018)

Posted on June 2, 2019 by admin

Making a film about the conflict between Israelis and the Palestinians (or, shortly, ‘the conflict’ as the locals call it) is probably almost as complicated as the peace talks between the two sides. Yet, scriptwriter and director Sameh Zoabi chose … Continue reading →

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on the bright side of marriage (Film: Two for the Road – Audrey Hepburn, 1967)

Posted on June 1, 2019 by admin

‘Two for the Road‘, the 1967 film by Stanley Donen enjoys the beautiful and appropriate music of Henry Mancini, but it seems to me that it could also fit a paraphrase of the famous song at the end of a … Continue reading →

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identity games (Film: Charade – Audrey Hepburn, 1963)

Posted on May 31, 2019 by admin

Had Stanley Donen directed only ‘Singin’ in the Rain‘ it would probably have been enough for him to have a place of honor in the history of cinema. But Donen has directed and produced many other successful films, most of … Continue reading →

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the enigmas of ‘Persona’ (Film: Persona – Ingmar Bergman, 1966)

Posted on May 18, 2019 by admin

‘Persona‘ is one of the most enigmatic movies in the history of cinema. Those who read the chronicles written right after the 1966 release of the film or the articles dedicated to it in the books of cinema history will … Continue reading →

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dream or absurd or both? (Film: Buffet Froid – Gérard Depardieu, 1979)

Posted on May 16, 2019 by admin

‘Buffet Froid‘ made in 1979 by Bertrand Blier can be seen as an almost perfect antithesis of the films of the French New Wave that had burst into the cinema world two decades ago. If the New Wave was a … Continue reading →

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a big story, a failed movie (Film: Red Joan – Judi Dench, 2018)

Posted on May 15, 2019 by admin

Trevor Nunn, the director of ‘Red Joan‘, had in his hands a huge story. He also had in the cast Judi Dench, a great actress in a role that seemed to have been written for her. The film starts very … Continue reading →

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an inconvenient mirror (Film: Cea mai fericitã fatã din lume – Radu Jude, 2009)

Posted on May 14, 2019 by admin

‘This is who we are!’. This is the message that film director Radu Jude repeats obsessively in all his films. He puts an uncomfortable mirror in the face of the sometimes unwilling Romanian spectators, bound to face unpleasant truths about … Continue reading →

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the formidable magnetism of Anna Magnani (film: Beautiful – Luchino Visconti, 1951)

Posted on May 13, 2019 by admin

‘They do not make movies like those anymore’ is a saying that makes me smile. Of course, it is true. For the good and for the bad. The technical means, the tastes of the audiences, the style of acting, and … Continue reading →

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late debut, but it was worth waiting (Film: Bli Dam – Joe El Dror, 2018)

Posted on May 12, 2019 by admin

I do not know whether the debut as a feature films director at the age of 57 is a record, but I’m sure it’s a rarity. Yet, Joe El Dror is not a new name for the Israeli public, being … Continue reading →

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a film made 50 years too late (Film: Pompeii – Paul W.S. Anderson, 2014)

Posted on May 9, 2019 by admin

I saw ‘Pompeii‘ in the wrong place and at the wrong time. Movies that heavily advertise their 3D effects must be seen in cinemas equipped with this projection technology. I skipped the movie at its time in cinemas, and I … Continue reading →

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