Israeli Cinema of the 2000s

Israeli cinema entered the 2000s amid artistic growth, greater professionalization, and increasing attention abroad.[6] A new generation of filmmakers brought more polished production methods to stories about Israel's diverse society, while established directors continued to explore the country's history and political life.[6] Films such as The Bubble, Waltz with Bashir, The Band's Visit, and Ajami placed individual experiences against current events and Israel's complex social structure, attracting substantial international acclaim.[7]

Israeli feature-film production increased substantially during the decade. An average of 16 feature-length films were produced annually between 2000 and 2004, rising to 23 annually between 2005 and 2008, compared with eight annually between 1995 and 1999.[1] The Cinema Law passed in 2001 significantly increased public support for the industry.[1][2] Government allocations were reported at NIS 58 million annually from 2004 through 2008 and NIS 67 million annually for 2009 through 2013.[1] Film-school graduates, television studios, and renewed domestic interest in Hebrew-language productions also contributed to the industry's expansion.[2]

War memory and the soldier's psychological experience formed one of the decade's most prominent threads. Kippur (2000) and Waltz with Bashir (2008) returned to the Yom Kippur War and the 1982 Lebanon War through the perspectives of participants trying to understand violence and loss.[6][3] Lebanon (2009) approached the First Lebanon War from inside an Israeli tank.[5] Israeli cinema also engaged directly with sexuality in military and intelligence settings: Yossi & Jagger (2002) and Walk on Water (2004), both directed by Eytan Fox, brought gay desire and identity into narratives involving soldiers and a Mossad agent.[6][2]

Religious communities became increasingly visible on screen. A Tradition article reports that 65 Israeli movies dealt with religious themes during 2000–2015, compared with 20 during 1960–1995, and names HaHesder and Ushpizin among significant examples.[8] Tikvah Ideas describes Ushpizin as an early sign of changing cinematic treatment of the ultra-Orthodox world and as one of the first widely seen Israeli films to portray that community from within.[9] The Secrets and My Father, My Lord, both released in 2007, continued the exploration of religious life.

Immigration and ethnic identity furnished another major source of stories. Late Marriage examined Georgian Jewish tradition, while Turn Left at the End of the World portrayed Indian and Moroccan immigrants in a Negev development town.[6][2] The Syrian Bride focused on a Druze family, and Ajami depicted an impoverished Arab neighborhood in Yafo.[2][10] Documentary filmmaking also flourished, with Checkpoint, No. 17, and 39 Pounds of Love addressing occupation, terrorism, bereavement, disability, and personal resilience.[6]

International festival success became a defining measure of the decade's significance. In 2007 alone, Beaufort, Sweet Mud, My Father, My Lord, Jellyfish, and The Band's Visit received major recognition at Berlin, Sundance, Tribeca, and Cannes.[10] Waltz with Bashir subsequently won a Golden Globe, multiple Ophir Awards, and a Directors Guild of America award, in addition to receiving an Academy Award nomination.[3] Lebanon won the Golden Lion at Venice in 2009,[5] while the nomination of Ajami marked the third consecutive year in which an Israeli film reached the Academy Award nominees for foreign-language film.[10]

The decade opened with several films that signaled the ambition of the new Israeli cinema. Kippur (2000), directed by Amos Gitai, explores the Yom Kippur War with an emphasis on the confusion of battle and the disruption of peacetime pursuits rather than conventional combat heroics.[6] Released the same year, Time of Favor (2000), directed by Joseph Cedar, centers on religious Zionist messianists and won an Israeli Academy Award.[6]

Late Marriage (2001), directed by Dover Kosashvili, portrays the collision between tradition and desire within Israel's Georgian Jewish community. Its protagonist, Zaza, faces family pressure to marry a woman selected by his parents rather than the woman he loves.[6] The source describes it as one of the best Israeli films to emerge in recent memory.[6]

The year 2002 produced several significant releases. Broken Wings, directed by Nir Bergman, examines a middle-class family struggling with grief and won an Israeli Academy Award.[6] Kedma, also directed by Amos Gitai, looks back at the 1948 War of Independence, though it received mixed reviews.[6] Yossi & Jagger, directed by Eytan Fox, depicts soldiers torn between military duty and personal desire, combining gay eroticism with a critique of Israeli militarism. Its subject was considered groundbreaking at a time when gay eroticism remained a major taboo in conservative Israeli society.[6] The film won several international awards and became recognized as a breakthrough work.[11] Hochmat Habeygale, directed by Ilan Heitner, appeared in academic curricula examining gender and the experience of being normal within an abnormal reality.[12] Silence of the Sirens, a 72-minute Hebrew-language film directed by Ori Inbar, was screened at an international academic film festival.[13]

Several 2003 films addressed loss, conflict, and communities rarely represented on screen. Checkpoint, directed by Yoav Shamir, examines the moral complexities of occupation and ongoing conflict, while No. 17, directed by David Ofek, searches for the identity of the seventeenth victim of a Tel Aviv suicide bombing.[6] Nina's Tragedies, directed by Savi Gabizon, explored a middle-class family navigating loss, and Alila, directed by Amos Gitai, focused on Tel Aviv's Sephardic working class.[6] Bonjour Monsieur Shlomi, directed by Shemi Zarhin, follows a Sephardic teenager burdened by family responsibility; James' Journey to Jerusalem addressed the experience of Christian Africans in Israel; and In Satmar Custody, directed by Nitzan Giladi, brought the world of Satmar Hasidim to Israeli screens.[6]

The year 2004 stands out as an especially rich one for Israeli cinema, with a cluster of films addressing gender, immigration, sexuality, religion, and ethnic identity.

Turn Left at the End of the World, directed by Avi Nesher, follows Sara, a teenager who immigrates from India to Israel and is sent to a Negev development town, where she befriends Nicole, the daughter of Moroccan immigrants.[2] The film also depicts labor unrest at a local Coca-Cola factory and a cricket match involving Indian and Moroccan immigrants and a visiting British team. It was described as a breakthrough and one of the most popular Israeli films of all time, presenting immigrant experiences that had rarely appeared on screen before.[2]

Walk on Water, directed by Eytan Fox, concerns a cynical Mossad agent assigned to protect the gay grandson of an infamous Nazi during the grandson's visit to Israel. It combines espionage with a human drama about redemption and friendship.[2] The film won international awards, earned millions of dollars abroad, established Fox as a leading director, and became one of the most successful Israeli films of its time.[2]

Campfire, directed by Joseph Cedar, follows a widow hoping to relocate with her two teenage daughters from Jerusalem to a settlement in the West Bank — known by its original, indigenous Jewish name of Judea and Samaria.[2] The film was identified as one of the few Israeli productions to address the country's National Religious experience and was praised for its focused storytelling.[2]

To Take a Wife, written and directed by Ronit Elkabetz and Shlomi Elkabetz, portrays a Moroccan-born wife and mother who seeks a divorce but faces sustained pressure from her husband and male relatives to remain in the marriage.[2] The film inaugurated the Elkabetz siblings' trilogy about a Moroccan-born woman's pursuit of independence, won the Audience Award at the Venice Film Festival, and received a long standing ovation there.[2]

The Syrian Bride, directed by Eran Riklis from a screenplay developed with Suha Arraf, follows a young Druze woman preparing to cross into Syria for an arranged marriage, knowing she will not be able to return to Israel.[2] The film also examines constraints facing other members of her family, including a sister who wishes to study social work.[2]

Ushpizin, directed by Gidi Dar, centers on a childless ultra-Orthodox Jerusalem couple hoping for a miracle pregnancy who receive an unwelcome visit from the husband's former criminal associates during Sukkot and feel religiously bound to welcome them.[2] Co-writer and star Shuli Rand drew on his experience of secular and ultra-Orthodox life; the film presents its threatening but ultimately comic criminals within a modern-day fable of redemption.[2] Tikvah Ideas describes Ushpizin as an early sign of change in Israeli cinema's treatment of the ultra-Orthodox world.[9]

Atash (Thirst), the feature-film debut of Palestinian-Israeli director Tawfik Abu Wael, depicts an Arab family living far from its village and producing charcoal under the control of a tyrannical father, while his son yearns for schooling.[2] Many viewers interpreted the film as a metaphor for oppression within a patriarchal system.[2]

Or, directed by Keren Yedaya, follows the daughter of an HIV-positive prostitute in a struggling Tel Aviv neighborhood.[2] The film won the Camera d'Or at the Cannes Film Festival and marked a breakthrough for actress Dana Ivgy.[2] Academic syllabi also included Metallic Blues, directed by Dan Verete, among films examined through themes of Holocaust memory, immigration, and multiculturalism.[14] Year Zero, directed by Yosef Pitchhadze, was analyzed alongside Atash as a work engaging with post-trauma and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.[15]

The mid-decade years continued the industry's upward creative trajectory. Free Zone (2005), directed by Amos Gitai and co-starring Natalie Portman, received mixed reviews, while Israeli actress Hanna Laslo won the Best Actress award at the 58th Cannes Film Festival for her performance.[6][10] Avenge But One of My Two Eyes (2005), directed by Avi Mograbi, examines the moral complexities of occupation and ongoing conflict.[6] Watermarks (2005), directed by Yaron Zilberman, revisits a Viennese women's swim team from the 1930s.[6] From Language to Language, a 56-minute film in Hebrew and German with English subtitles directed by Nurith Aviv, also appeared in an international film-festival program.[13]

In 2006, 39 Pounds of Love, directed by Dani Menkin, investigated the life of a survivor of muscular dystrophy and exemplified Israeli films whose subjects extended beyond the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.[6] Other releases documented by festival programs include Storm of Emotions (84 minutes, directed by Yael Klopmann), The Diaries of Yossef Nachmani (63 minutes, directed by Dalia Karpel), Nadia's Friends (60 minutes, directed by Chanoch Zeevi), and Did Herzl Really Say That? (50 minutes, directed by Ido Bahat).[13] Aviva, My Love, directed by Shemi Zarhin, was included in university curricula examining gender and militarization.[14]

The Library of Congress's Israeli Film Series also presented Code Name: Bayonet (2006), directed by Rob Maiberg, a documentary about the history of Mossad's secret Bayonet unit and the campaign against those responsible for the 1972 Munich Olympics massacre. The program description cites testimony from Mossad agents and CIA operatives, although it does not explicitly identify the film's country of production.[16]

The year 2007 was a breakout period for Israeli cinema on the international festival circuit, with multiple films earning major prizes at leading global venues.

Beaufort, directed by Joseph Cedar, concerns Israeli soldiers stationed at Lebanon's Beaufort Castle before Israel's 2000 withdrawal from southern Lebanon and was adapted from Ron Leshem's novel.[11][17] It won Cedar the Best Director prize and 11 additional awards at the Berlin Film Festival and received an Academy Award nomination for Best Foreign Language Film.[10]

Sweet Mud, directed by Dror Shaul, took the top Sundance prize for international features.[10] My Father, My Lord, directed by David Volach and centered on an ultra-Orthodox family on holiday, won the top foreign-feature prize at Tribeca.[10] Jellyfish, directed by Etgar Keret and Shira Geffen, received the Camera d'Or at Cannes.[10]

The Band's Visit, directed by Eran Kolirin, tells the story of an Egyptian police band that becomes stranded in an Israeli town and encounters an unexpected side of the country; it won three prizes at Cannes.[10] Ha-Matzlihim (The Winners), a 92-minute Hebrew-language film directed by Mikhael Gurevitch, was showcased at an international festival that year.[13] On Hold, a 52-minute film featuring Hebrew and Arabic dialogue directed by Rokaya Sabbah, and Children of the Sun, directed by Ran Tal, appeared in academic programs examining Israeli society and the kibbutz.[13][12]

The Secrets, directed by Avi Nesher, concerns female seminary students in Safed who become immersed in Kabbalah.[11] Noodle, directed by Ayelet Menahemi, also appeared in a university curriculum examining immigration and multiculturalism.[14]

Waltz with Bashir (2008), directed by Ari Folman, is an animated documentary about Folman's attempt to recover his memories of the 1982 Lebanon War through therapy and conversations with former comrades.[3] Partially funded by the Israeli government, it depicted the Israeli experience of the conflict with unusual psychological depth.[4] The film won 18 awards, including the Golden Globe for Best Foreign Language Film, the Directors Guild of America award for outstanding directorial achievement in documentary, and Ophir Awards for best film, director, and screenplay.[3] It also received an Academy Award nomination and developed a following in Lebanon despite a Lebanese government ban.[4]

Lebanon (2009), directed by Samuel Maoz, is set during the 1982 Lebanon War and follows an Israeli tank crew.[5] It received the Golden Lion at the 66th Venice International Film Festival, becoming the first Israeli film to win the award since its introduction in 1949.[5]

Ajami (2009), co-directed by Scandar Copti and Yaron Shani, is set in an impoverished Arab neighborhood in Yafo.[10] It was the first predominantly Arab-language film submitted by Israel for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film, and its nomination marked the third consecutive year in which an Israeli film received an Oscar nomination.[10]

Several films generated political controversy within the region and internationally. The Band's Visit, which depicts an Egyptian police band stranded in an Israeli town and explores coexistence between Israelis and Egyptians, was pulled from a screening in Egypt after the event became public. Mohammed Munir, governor of the Cairo District, announced an investigation into which official had initially approved it.[18] The cancellation highlighted continuing political barriers to the public presentation of Israeli cultural works in Egypt.

Waltz with Bashir drew commentary about its treatment of the Sabra and Shatila massacres. The Begin-Sadat Center for Strategic Studies characterized the film as more psychological than historical and argued that its historical omissions were especially prominent in relation to those events.[19] A Ben-Gurion University publication analyzed the film as part of Israeli narratives juxtaposing Palestinian refugees with Holocaust victims and, less explicitly, Israeli soldiers with Nazi officers to construct political meaning around the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.[20]

Other films, including Campfire, The Syrian Bride, Atash, Beaufort, and Yossi & Jagger, addressed contested political, national, ethnic, religious, and military subjects. The available sources document a selected body of films rather than a comprehensive inventory of every Israeli film released between 2000 and 2009.

The following titles are drawn from documented sources and form a selected rather than exhaustive catalog of Israeli films from the decade.

2000: Kippur (dir. Amos Gitai); Time of Favor (dir. Joseph Cedar).[6]

2001: Late Marriage (dir. Dover Kosashvili).[6]

2002: Broken Wings (dir. Nir Bergman); Kedma (dir. Amos Gitai); Yossi & Jagger (dir. Eytan Fox).[6] Hochmat Habeygale (dir. Ilan Heitner).[12] Silence of the Sirens (dir. Ori Inbar, 72 min.).[13]

2003: Alila (dir. Amos Gitai); Bonjour Monsieur Shlomi (dir. Shemi Zarhin); James' Journey to Jerusalem; Checkpoint (dir. Yoav Shamir); No. 17 (dir. David Ofek); In Satmar Custody (dir. Nitzan Giladi); Nina's Tragedies (dir. Savi Gabizon).[6]

2004: Turn Left at the End of the World (dir. Avi Nesher); Walk on Water (dir. Eytan Fox); Campfire (dir. Joseph Cedar); To Take a Wife (dirs. Ronit Elkabetz and Shlomi Elkabetz); The Syrian Bride (dir. Eran Riklis); Ushpizin (dir. Gidi Dar); Atash (Thirst, dir. Tawfik Abu Wael); Or (dir. Keren Yedaya).[2] Metallic Blues (dir. Dan Verete).[14] Year Zero (dir. Yosef Pitchhadze).[15] To Be an Israeli Woman: Regina (dir. Ziva Postec, 65 min.).[13]

2005: Free Zone (dir. Amos Gitai); Avenge But One of My Two Eyes (dir. Avi Mograbi); Watermarks (dir. Yaron Zilberman).[6] From Language to Language (dir. Nurith Aviv, 56 min.).[13]

2006: 39 Pounds of Love (dir. Dani Menkin).[6] Aviva, My Love (dir. Shemi Zarhin).[14] Storm of Emotions (dir. Yael Klopmann, 84 min.); The Diaries of Yossef Nachmani (dir. Dalia Karpel, 63 min.); Nadia's Friends (dir. Chanoch Zeevi, 60 min.); Did Herzl Really Say That? (dir. Ido Bahat, 50 min.).[13]

2007: Beaufort (dir. Joseph Cedar); Sweet Mud (dir. Dror Shaul); My Father, My Lord (dir. David Volach); Jellyfish (dirs. Etgar Keret and Shira Geffen); The Band's Visit (dir. Eran Kolirin).[10] The Secrets (dir. Avi Nesher).[11] Noodle (dir. Ayelet Menahemi).[14] Children of the Sun (dir. Ran Tal).[12] Ha-Matzlihim / The Winners (dir. Mikhael Gurevitch, 92 min.); On Hold (dir. Rokaya Sabbah, 52 min.).[13]

2008: Waltz with Bashir (dir. Ari Folman).[3]

2009: Lebanon (dir. Samuel Maoz).[5] Ajami (dirs. Scandar Copti and Yaron Shani).[10]