Stars:
*** 1/2
Rating: PG-13 for mature themes
Run Time: 1 hour, 29 minutes. In Arabic, Hebrew and English with English subtitles
Ethnic
tensions take a backseat to human kindness in this charming Israeli indie.
The
Alexandria Police Ceremonial Orchestra is stuck. Invited to speak at the
opening of an Arab Cultural Center, the orchestra unexpectedly find themselves
stranded in an Israeli desert town with little money, no lodging and no
transportation.
The band’s
leader (Sasson Gabai as Tewfiq) is a proud man who insists that his group of
law enforcement musicians conduct themselves with propriety, even when faced
with the disdain of a motley assortment of locals led by sultry café owner Dina
(the gorgeous Ronit Elkabetz).
When Dina
offers to put the band up for the night, divvying them up between neighboring
homes, Tewfiq struggles to maintain decorum but has no choice but to accept.
That
solitary evening is the backbone of this sweet and poignant import that speaks understated
volumes about Israeli-Arab relations. The fish-out-of-water card is played with
dignity and wit as racial intolerance is sidestepped in search of a comfortable
middle ground.
Dina and
Tewfiq embody the emotional core, cautiously constructing a gentle bond based
on shared hurts and histories. Underscored by a profound and almost painful
sense of longing.
Imagery is
striking – the darkly handsome, uniformed in powder-blue Egyptians set against
the stark Israeli countryside, an unforgiving landscape that speaks to Middle
Eastern hardship and more deeply to the cultural divide.
Sweet moments
– a ragtag dinner table chorus of “Summertime” and a dulcet trumpet solo of
Chet Baker’s “My Funny Valentine” -- work wonders but edge perilously close to
cute.
Dialogue is
spare, in turns tender and awkward yet always with an eye towards the universal
language of hope.