Lebanon
Striking, sickening and visceral - an essential experience.
Israeli director Samuel Maoz tells this incredibly personal tale of the 1982 Lebanon war. As a veteran of the conflict, it took him 25 years to write the script for Lebanon, such was his own personal trauma.
Like last year's The Hurt Locker, this painfully tense film doesn't focus on the politics of war, just on the difficult choices soldiers have to make, and how they deal with them. What makes Lebanon even more powerful is that the entire film takes place within the confines of a tank, with any external scenes seen through the gunsight. Maoz creates a dark, dank, claustrophobic and always believable set in which to throw his young cast.
Yoav Donat is moving as the tank gunner Shmulik, whose hesitation at firing his weapon has terrible consequences. The fear this young soldier must feel is palpable, and it's through Donat's eyes we feel the horror of war. He is ably supported by the naive and innocent Yigal (Michael Moshonov) and Herzl (Oshri Cohen), and relunctant but sympathetic commander Assi (Itay Tiran). Together they deal with crumbling confidences, the brutal reality of bodies torn apart and a lack of faith in their superior commanders.
The external scenes are devastatingly real, and the tension racked up by the reactions of these terrified boys. You can almost smell the tank, as Maoz has been careful to show every dripping, disgusting detail of a tank that is used to store dead soldiers and frantic hostages. There isn't much chance for Assi and his men to have a chat, bar one scene where Shmulik instinctively knows when to tell a story of grief that actually lifts their spirits. With the plot just portraying one day's mission to "clean up" a village, it's low on sharp, expositionary dialogue, using literally blood, sweat and tears to thrill in the hands of haunting actors who can convey so much with just a glance.
Lebanon is striking, sickening and visceral - an essential experience.
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