At one point the heroine asks an actor to sign her album, and he remarks that it's a beautiful album-- which is an apt way to describe this movie. The movie is based on the true memories of one woman, from the hard days of pre-state Israel. It originated as a monodrama, and the story is very much from the woman's point of view. She wants to marry a member of a kibbutz-- a community where everyone votes on everyone else's budget, housing, and so on-- and she complains that she wants to be with him but not with everybody else. The movie too pushes everybody else a bit to the side; the performance of the lead actress, who had already played the part on the stage for years, compensates for the sketchiness of the other characters. And there is also a continual, appealing picture-album of period settings in 1940s Galilee, with pleasant music that provides relief from the sometimes grim happenings. Even in Israel (as the original author remarked at a pre-release screening) young people don't connect with this history of blood, sweat, and tears; and here we have an effective reminder, or an attractive introduction for those who need one.
Review of An Israeli Love Story
