In its 15th year, the Israeli Film Festival has compiled an impressive roster of prize-winning films spanning narrative and documentary, from tearjerkers to rude farces. The most familiar to Philly audiences is Samuel Maoz’s “Lebanon,” a claustrophobic thriller about tank soldiers in the 1982 Lebanon war, which gives audiences who missed its run last year at the Ritz a chance to catch up. Other highlights of the six-week fest include:
‘This Is Sodom’
Following in the footsteps of Monty Python’s “Life of Brian,” the cast of Israel’s answer to “SNL” offer an outrageous take on the Biblical epic, setting a record for most opening weekend tickets sold for a local film.
‘The Matchmaker’
This coming-of-age film includes the usual sexual awakenings, but more centrally focuses on a young boy’s awakening to the scars left by the Holocaust on survivors in Haifa.
‘Missing Father’
In this fascinating (if self-indulgent) memoir, Yair Elazar — son of David Elazar, the legendary former Chief of Staff of the Israeli Defense Forces — comes to terms with his father’s legacy in both his country and his family.
