Sample Letter Regarding the Israeli Cinema Essay Example For Students

Sample Letter Regarding the Israeli Cinema Essay As a proud figure in our community today and someone who is very passionate about Israeli history, I would like to organize a Movie Night program. The Movie Night program will be followed by a short discussion. I am writing to you all because I feel as though it is extremely important to discuss explain why the culture of Israel through the medium cinema. There are several advantages of learning from films rather than learning through other forms of representation. During the program I will show ten movies that clearly illustrate the changes in Israeli society throughout the past century. Watching and analyzing major Israeli films, we will explore the intensity of the place, its trends throughout history, and see how filmmakers respond both to the dreams and the reality of modern Israel. The program will mostly explore the tensions between â€Å"the individual† and â€Å"the collective† as it pertains to Zionism, gender and sexuality, religion, the conflict with Arabs, and Mizrahi ethnicity. The films that will be viewed throughout the program will relate to each other in many ways. The relations will be thematic as well as artistic. There is no reason why after reading this letter you will have a problem sponsoring this great program. As the program begins we will go in depth and talk about the beginning stages of Israeli film. Noah Sokolovsky’s 1913 film, Eretz Yisrael, is a qualified starter film when talking about the very early stages of film in Israel. Noah Sokolovsky’s voyage started in Odessa in April 1913 as he boarded a ship towards Israel along with almost 100 Jews. The film crew arrived in Jaffa and wherever they went people would crowd the streets. The film showed Jaffa’s teacher’s school and Gymnasia, Tel-Aviv’s main school. Some of the clips showed the establishing of orange industries and showed camels carrying the crates to Jaffa for export. It also showed wine vineyards as well as some residents leaving the synagogue after services. The synagogue was called Zichron Yaakov. Another clip showed a man with one arm plowing behind a horse. One of the last clips shows a festival and crowds and crowds of people. It also showed Jewish athletes in some sort of sport presentation. Overall, the film expresses that the lives of the residents in Palestine during 1913 were lively and most importantly productive. Of course this was all 35 years before Israel was founded. This movie was to show how nice and easy-going life was in Palestine. The biggest goal for these filmmakers was that they wanted to spread the idea of Zionism. The next movie night program will be Yet another movie that shows the moving and inching towards â€Å"the collective† is Helmar Lerski’s Avodah. This film was a milestone documentary that celebrates the early pioneers that settled in Palestine. With surprisingly adequate visual compositions for that time and a pleasant soundtrack by the Budapest Symphony Orchestra, this movie shows the technological and agricultural feats of the early Israeli settlers. It also applauds the ideas of a new Jewish state. Most of the clips taken from the movie are shots from the Jaffa Port in Tel-Aviv. Other short clips are of several kibbutzim at that time. Helmar Lerski had an expressive style that created a very mythic image of the common Jew in Palestine. The settlers were showed triumphing amidst the sweeping desert landscape. What people should take away from the movie is that it was mainly a propaganda film, feeding the spread of Zionism. It was to show the strengthening of the land, the overall agriculture booming and shows the redemptive efforts of the early Jewish settlers. One point that will also be talked about in the discussions is that compared to other films at this time, this one in particular has cinematic language. It doesnt have a narration but at the same time it has these accepted conventions or methods by which movies communicate. Other topics that would be discussed are the ongoing push for masculinity among Jews and how women werent really very relevant until much later. As we move on in time twenty or thirty years later we arrive at the heroic years in Israel. The discussions that will take place after the movie is shown are those that involve the heroic years. The heroic genre years started in the forties and are still going on through the present day. The basis of these years show mainly wars. These years go from the Independence Wars, all the way through the First and Second Lebanon Wars. Thorold Dickinson goes along with the underlying theme of these years in his 1955 classic, Hill 24 Doesnt Answer. This theory of how Israeli soldiers have been fighting for their land with such heroism and devotion for their country is represented fully in this film. The movie is taken from a predominantly Israeli point of view. The main points in the film are voiced out with a bit of conviction and confidence. This feature film was the first ever shot in Israel. It deals with the Israeli War of independence and the breakout of animosity and aggression between countries. Different scenes show the audience the courage and bravery of the soldiers themselves. For example, the clips near the end of the film where unfortunately some of the soldiers die. Although they were bombed, the soldiers claimed the hill. The flag was taken from one of the soldier’s dead bodies so that it could be clearly represented who was the victor, Israel. This shows the viewers how â€Å"heroic† these soldiers, but at the same time citizens of Israel were. With the establishment of the Jewish state, Israel’s in general want to settle down and have a normal life with a more westernized style. Boaz Davidson understands this slow but steady transition when he starts the Lemon Popsicle campaign in 1978. This Israeli cult film’s main themes are surrounded by sex. The movie focuses on three teens that grow up in Tel Aviv, dealing with their friendships with each other and mostly their sexual experiences with the opposite sex. Making A Movie EssayYehuda, the lyricist and Yaacov, the guitarist, sing about desertion, death, love, loss and guilt. This was a gritty, straightforward documentary that showed the heartfelt feelings of two very distraught children who grew up to became musical artists. Through their music, they and the audience took a cathartic journey. The next night of the program will be the Holocaust topic continued. We will go over in our discussions this night about the children of the Holocaust survivors and how they imagine their parents as survivors. This Boaz Davidson film, Alex Holeh Ahavah or Alex is Lovesick was made in 1986. This cult film portrays times in Israel during the 1950’s. It is a romantic comedy that was made during a time when Israel was going through an austerity period. Overall, this film uses several authentic examples to genuinely recreate the times of this country during the 1950’s through the romantic comedy genre. The first example of austerity in Israel in the film is of course the black market scene. Almost 700,00 immigrants came to Israel around 1948, which led to austerity in the country. The staple foods like oil and butter were some of the good that were rationed. Inevitably, black markets started to pop up and would sell these smuggled goods from the countryside for higher prices. The scene picks up as Alex and his mother arrive at the apartment where the black market is. The scene itself is genuine of the times based on how suspicious the lady at the door was the whole scene. This paints a picture of how serious it was but also offers a comedic way of looking at it based on the movie genre. Alex’s mother was surprised with the amount the lady was charging for butter, which is also accurate based on the fact that that people were charged higher prices during this time. Other examples throughout include the clothes and dress of the actors in the film as well as the search for lost family members due to the Holocaust. In the film, Alex’s aunt, Lola, is a Holocaust survivor from Poland in search for her lost husband. They got lost after the invasion of Poland by the Nazis. This is also obviously historically accurate because many people were in a panic and lost many family members during this time. Once again, this movie does an outstanding job portraying some of the aspects people living in Israel had to do deal with during this harsh time in history. Alex is Lovesick clearly illustrates how Boaz Davidson tries to harshen the blow of the past realities. After the Holocaust, we will dive into the Orientalizing of Arab-Jews. A lot of stereotyping goes on about those that are Mizrahi. In the discussions, we will pinpoint what stereotypes can be found in the movies and how they compare to stereotypes in our culture today. Sallah was a 1964 feature directed by Ephraim Kishon. The film brings about the craziness that was Israeli immigration through cinematic comedy. The main character, Sallah Shabati, throughout the movie completely insinuates the different stereotypes of the time. The irreverent depictions of Kibbutzim during the film are indeed somewhat head-turners. The false representation of Kibbutzniks in the film contradicts the myth of Socialist solidarity and collectivist idealism. The film did end up getting nominated for an Academy award in 1964. Despite the clear, stereotypical messages throughout the movie, the film is a success. What is learned from this situation is that being controversial, most of time, sells. Continuing with the personal genre, the next movie we would show in the program is Late Marriage, directed by Dover Kosashvili. It is an Israeli film that was released in 2001. The film deals with the struggles of marriage of a Judaea-Georgian family and their son. â€Å"Zaza† has already found his true love but he wouldnt dare ask her to marry him because of his family and how extremely strict they are. There are certain traditions that must stay in place from generations to generations. The proper spouse is important for a Georgian-Israeli family. This superbly played film, directed with remarkable skill for a first-time feature filmmaker, is truly an adult drama. It deals with the kind of compromises and sacrifices that, for better or worse, come with maturity. Koshashvili also makes effective use of explicit sexuality to enrich his story without ever appearing the slightest bit lewd. I would end the Movie Night program with a somewhat of a controversial subject, Gay and Lesbians cinema. The new millennium brought on different types of social groups to light in Israel. â€Å"Fucking Different Tel Aviv† is an anthology of shorts showing the diverse views gay sexuality in a traditional Tel-Aviv, from the point of view of twelve gay and lesbian filmmakers. Yair Hochner was one of the directors of the 2008 feature film. The film delivers a well-balanced piece of unique shorts that contain story, characters, plot and atmosphere. The film reveals the key role politics and religion play in gay and lesbian sexualities in Israel. It has underlying themes that could reinforce stereotypes of gay and lesbian life in Tel-Aviv today, though the different ways of approaching the topic undermines any attempt to define a singular gay or lesbian Israeli lifestyle. All I all, this film takes you to loosen up and look again at the traditional concepts of â€Å"masculinity† and â€Å"Femininity. The movies that will be shown will again explore the intensity of the place, its trends throughout history, and see how filmmakers respond both to the dreams and the reality of modern Israel. It should be clear to all those who took the time to read this letter that this Movie Night Program is a necessity in our community today. Movies teach us all about ourselves, past and present societies. They can be an amazing source of insight and inspiration; we just have to be willing to learn.