Bethlehem (2014)

In a fascinating coincidence this excellent film,and Hany Abu-Assad's even better 'Omar' appeared at nearly the same time. Both tell similar stories, one from the Israeli perspective and one from the Palestinian. Both tell of a young man recruited (or forced) into being an informer for the Israelis. We see these young men torn in multiple directions, risking their lives if they are uncovered, trying to play one side against the other, finding themselves drawn ever deeper in a morass they are powerless to stop. In Bethlehem the 'hero' is only a teenager, and an immature one at that. His older brother is an accomplished terrorist/freedom fighter, leaving his little brother Sanfur without much of an identity of his own, he seems overlooked by his family and unimportant to his community. Ironically in many ways Sanfur's closest relationship is to his middle-aged Israeli 'handler', who also clearly has fatherly feelings towards the youth, further complicating the relationship. The acting is generally excellent, and there's a lot of thriller like tension to go along with the human drama. I actually saw this and 'Omar' within days of each other, and I would recommend the same approach to others. Seeing the two sides of the same coin gives a feeling of greater insight into the conundrum that is the middle-east. Also, both directors are careful not to paint black and white portraits of either side, both treat all involved as human, so the differences in perspective are both fascinating and subtle.

The first scene involves some Palestinian boys engaged in an updated version of "chicken" in the desert outside of Jerusalem. Instead of some teenagers in the 1950's driving their cars off some embankment as in "Rebel without a Cause", these boys are using semi-automatic weapons and a rather worn "bullet-proof" vest. The main character of the film, Sanfur (played by Shadi Mar'i in completely convincing performance), is a Palestinian teenager who dons the vest and instructs his fellow peers to shoot him, if they have the guts. This is a game but a very brutal one. When some of the adults appear on the scene, the kids scatter. But I think the point is the adults are playing at the same brutal game, daring each other to fire at one another.The film involves three groups: two militia groups of Palestinians who are somewhat at odds with each other, Hamas and the Palestinian Authority, and their common enemy, the Israels. Sanfur is literally caught between all three who seem to be playing a very deadly game of tug-of-war. His family is sympathetic to the Palestinian Authority but he socializes with people in Hamas, the more radical of the two. At the same time, Sanfur is good friends with Razi (Tsahi Halevi in an equally compelling performance), who is in reality an Israeli agent. His agency's duty is to infiltrate the Palestinian regions near Jerusalem and Bethlehem and root out members of the Palestinian militia groups. While Ravi appears to be Sanfur's friend at one level, the Israeli is using the boy to obtain information about Hamas.The conflict begins with a decision to hunt down and assassinate a Hamas leader name of Ibrahim, whom the Israelis have been chasing for a year but is also, unfortunately, Sanfur's brother. Sanfur finds himself caught between the radical Hamas leaders, his family which appear to be on the moderate side of the conflict, and Ravi the Israeli, who has become like a father-figure for the boy. Now the boy is torn between all these loyalties. The crucial moment of the film occurs when Sanfur forces Ravi to take a kind of test of friendship. Will he succeed or fail? Will the boy side with the Palestinian authority, Hamas or with the Israeli agent? An incredibly compelling film, but a very dark one about the current hostilities between Israelis and Palestinians. The acting is outstanding, and I have read that some of the actors had never performed in a film before. The viewer feels as if he or she is with these people, almost spying on their conversations and actions. There is never a dull moment, but this is not that kind of film where the good guys and the bad guys are neatly spelled out for us.

There are some films that can get saved by a clever or dramatic ending, but rarely is there an excellent film that gets ruined by a terrible ending. Not that the ending is "emotionally" or "dramatically" terrible, and I won't go any further in the event you see this film to hint about what happens. But it seemed to me that the film simply ends with no resolution. Of course, that's what the authors are trying to say - the situation seems to have no solution, so why should the film have a satisfactory or even an unsatisfactory ending. I understand that. But this film simply ends. In mid thought. Otherwise it's a marvelous film, with terrific acting, photography and a well crafted script. The film does require that you have some understanding of the issue, and the more you are familiar with present days problems in Israel the more you will "enjoy" the film.

In Bethlehem, Israeli director Yuval Adler's diagnoses the Israeli-Palestian stand-off as a hopeless excess of testosterone. The largely male cast is in constant action, pacing, plotting, strutting, risking, as if they're addicted to a pumped-up adrenalin. Mainly strutting. Two rivals meet, tease, then race up a building's stairs. From the top the winner throws his rival to his death. Boys will be boys.The opening and closing scenes set up the coming of age of the 17-year-old Palestinian Sanfur. His name comes from the Smurfs but no softness or play is allowed him. In the first scene he accepts his friends' dare to take a kalyshnikoff shot to an armoured vest. He's wounded. In the last shot he sits in tears beside the Israeli Secret Service agent Razi, whom he has just killed, first shooting him, then bashing in his skull. The latter detail makes the kill more direct, more emotional. In his subsequent remorse and grief Razi's last trace of Smurf emerges. This coming of age is a Bar Mitzvah on steroids.Sanfur's older brother Ibrahim is a prominent terrorist/freedom fighter, supported by both Hamas and Al Aqsa. The two anti-Israel armies almost come to blows in their own stand-off, over who will provide Ibrahim's last honours. Further fracturing the movement, the Arab groups disdain of the Bedouins, which only fires the ambition of another killer, Badawi. Badawi coerces Sanfur into killing Razi to atone for his collaboration. The adrenalin drives the Arab men into constant fights among themselves as well as against Israel. And as the Israeli intelligence seeks troubled Arabs to play, to make collaborators, the Arab is put to war within himself as well. So, too, the Israeli. Razi saves Sanfur from the plot to kill Ibrahim, for the given reason that he's too important a source to lose, but also because he has developed genuine feelings for the "buddy" he has counselled and supported — and exploited — for several years.Razi bullheadedly rushes to his fatal meeting despite his wife's warning and the female commander's order that he not go. Characters living on their pumped adrenalin keep the cycle of killing and retribution going. War breeds war but peace does not breed peace. There's no blood in it. For more see www.yacowar.blogspot.com.