Harodim (2012)
Lazarus Fell, a former naval intelligence officer trained in black ops and tasked with tracking down the most wanted Terrorist in the world, has gone rogue, realizing his mission has been inexplicably compromised by his own chain of command. As a result, Lazarus has faked his own death, forsaken his life, his family and all that matters to him in the world, to continue his solitary pursuit. But he has personal motivations as well, believing his father, Solomon Fell, Chief of Operations for the Office of Naval Intelligence, was killed in the attacks of 9/11 – the event masterminded by the selfsame Terrorist.
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Even if you agree with 9/11 conspiracy theory, you will still be asleep by the end of this movie about two guys in a room. But honestly, are you going to form political opinions based on exposition being spewed out in a scripted drama? Or perhaps you don't need convincing, and you get a thrill out of seeing your own preexisting belief confirmed on the silver screen. If so, you are not alone. I think everyone does that. But you will still need a strong cup of coffee for this flick. I would rather be water-boarded than have to sit through that again.For myself, I have read the 9/11 report and seen other films (documentaries) on this subject. One thing the movie gets right is that those theories truly belong in fiction and should stay there.
I had a bad feeling about watching this (according to this awful rating) but I also thought this could be one of these few cases of raging viewers down-voting a good movie because of very personal reasons. And this seems to be the case.To be clear: My voting of 8/10 is based ONLY on the premise of viewing this as a total work of fiction loosely based on some facts. I understand that watching this movie as a person who was directly and personally affected by 9/11 probably makes said person quite angry. This movie could easily been seen as cheap propaganda, but i guess this was not really the intention.Long story short: This movie is very enjoyable if you like stage-play-like films where dialog is the main ingredient. Basically there is just a handful actors in one cheap location. But who cares if said dialog manages to keep you listening for the whole time? If you're open minded and like thought provoking films (even if they may be just propaganda): Watch it! You won't regret it.BTW I seldom review movies, only if i feel that a movie deserves it.
Rather than waste time with unproven details that side-track us into non-constructive debate over minutae, this film provides a chance to access our feelings and empathise with the actors on both sides of 9/11 events.***spoiler*** Peter Fonda turns up towards the end of the movie and takes over the show. He doesn't just act, but you can tell he's speaking from the heart - a fact which is confirmed by watching the making of on the very worthwhile DVD. I agree with the previous reviewer that the black-ops dude is a little young and fantastic. This is less a fault of the producers, but of the movie world per se: the lie that it's "up to a lone hero to conquer the bad guy" - rubbish......but that in no way hampers the great value of this picture. To me personally, Harodim is in a category with "Margin Call": soothing opportunity to see past arbitrary details and whodunits and access universal laws we deal can deal with in this lifetime or ignore at our peril!I truly hope Harodim doesn't get buried in the States, or reduced to a "conspiracy" pic. More than that, it is a work of art. You needn't be part of the whole "Loose Change" truther movement to enjoy this film!Harodim makes a valiant effort to connect the dots, starting with the CIA-Afghanistan-Bush-Laden connection, up to and including the tragedy of 911 that we all still chew on, like it or not!!*** spoiler *** best summed up in its own words from the excellent script: (I'm quoting from memory) "we inevitably channel our energy either into art or war". The guys who made Harodim did the right thing: art with a conscience, but attempting (IMO - successfully!) to keep prejudice to a minimum. One or two factual errors I happily ignore, and feel sorry for anyone who rips the movie because of them. I am grateful I came across this DVD, and am about to re-watch it momentarily. PEACE!
This movie needs to be seen by every human on the planet. Every so often Hollywood gets it canny and right and lets us in on the secret world of manipulation by powerful private factions in global economics and politics. Harodim follows in the footsteps of China Syndrome, Mickey One and Wall Street in showing us how the game is really played.In spite of the claustrophobic, stage play ambiance, Harodim is as riveting and compelling as any Lars Von Trier stage set piece. Peter Fonda is convincing and the revelatory nature of his role keeps his deadpan world weary character from predictability. Travis Fimmel must have taken time out from his smirking role in Vikings to make this film. His portrayal of slowly dawning enlightenment has its share of clichés, but this is more in the nature of the script than limitations of his craft. Michael Desante portrayal of Osama Bin Laden is authentic and lends the film its motivic rationale without any equivocation.