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November 23, 2007

Stuck In The Middle (East) With You

There is an excellent film out there suffering from a publicity problem.

The problem is that it is the Israeli nominee for Best Foreign Language Oscar and all the attention is being paid to the film that was disqualified – fairly or otherwise – from that position, The Band’s Visit.

I don’t want to get into why The Band’s Visit was disqualified, other than to say that it was absurd in process. Some have accused the makers of the new nominee of being behind the effort to DQ the other film. I don’t know. And I don’t really care. The Band’s Visit is in the able hands of Michael Barker and Tom Bernard. They love the movie. Audiences at festivals have loved the movie. It will have its day in the sun.

But the film I am writing about today is not The Band’s Visit, but Beaufort.

Beaufort. Sounds kinda French, huh?

Beaufort is the name of an Israeli army outpost at The Beaufort Castle, a crusader fort in Lebanon, that was held until the very last moments of the Israeli occupation back in 2000. The story centers around one soldier, a 22-year-old commander named Liraz Liberti. But it really is a story, like so many great war stories, about the humanity of the soldiers.

Joseph Cedar, whose first two films, Time of Favor and Campfire, were also nominated to represent Israel in the Best Foreign Language Film race, continues to get better as a filmmaker. In Beaufort, he takes strokes from many directing masters and makes a film that, except for language, would be a powerful standout in any country’s film output. There is more than a little of Kubrick’s Paths of Glory here, as the story focuses on the men in the trenches – here, bunkers – and their anticipation of what they face. There is a touch of Altman, in the darkest moments of M*A*S*H, as well as in those sardonically dry camp announcements, which in Beaufort come down to, “Incoming, incoming!” and “Impact, impact.” There is a bit of Ridley Scott from the opening title sequence, as the claustrophobic spaces that the men run through like rats in cages are a naturalistic combination of the imagery from Alien, as well as Kubrick’s 2001: A Space Odyssey. And the list continues from there...

The movie, about which I don’t want to say too much in fear of giving away its secrets, is set at the very end of the Lebanese occupation after 18 years of fighting and controversy. Being stuck up there is both and honor and an embarrassment. Some ache to leave, some ache for more serious duty. But the job of the soldier is to follow orders to the best of their ability. And heroes and cowards can be found in any corner of a war zone.

The star of the film is 23-year-old Oshri Cohen, a visual combo of Jason Patric and Hayden Christensen. He plays the highest-ranking officer in the fort, at 22 almost expected to be weak – whether that weakness shows up as indecision or overzealousness - but determined to do the right thing, no matter what it is or what its context. It is a tremendous performance that will have American filmmakers trying to bring him over here in a hurry.

The story of what will be, inevitably, a retreat, has all the angst of worn out warriors stuck somewhere that makes no sense. It is all highlighted by the fact that in Israel, military service is very much a way of life. It is not a choice. Everyone, male and female, serves within age boundaries. But it is also a fine film for Americans in the Iraq era because of the ambivalence of many of the soldiers about the assignment. And in the end, war is war, dead is dead, and honor has its own context.

Beaufort’s road to Oscar attention may be controversial, but it would really be a shame for this film (distribution rights held by tiny Kino International in the US), to get overlooked in the discussion because of how it landed here. I was mixed positive on Cedar’s Campfire, a movie with some terrific performances but a tendency to get stuck in its own head. But this one, after just one viewing, really sticks with me. I have thought of it daily since screening it. And I expect to see it again and encourage others to visit it with blinders to the political football it has become. Beaufort is one of those examples of a foreign film that would really have been lost in America if it wasn’t for Oscar and that we would all been less for having missed.

Posted by poland at November 23, 2007 05:07 PM

Comments

Posted by: jeffmcm at November 24, 2007 12:21 AM

Posted by: RingoKid at November 24, 2007 10:17 AM

Posted by: RingoKid at November 24, 2007 10:24 AM

Posted by: David Poland at November 26, 2007 12:48 AM

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