A Tasty Dish: Classic Israeli Movies

From humble beginnings, the Israeli film industry has developed into a strong force on the international entertainment scene.

By ISRAEL CATALOG

NOVEMBER 22, 2010 14:03

IsraelCatalog221110_A (photo credit: IsraelCatalog) — IsraelCatalog221110_A

(photo credit: IsraelCatalog)

Forget the Spaghetti Westerns of the United States,the Israeli movie industry of the 1960s and 1970s had its own tasty dishes topresent to audiences – the so-called “Boureka Movies,” which drew viewers tothe cinema in droves.

Taking their name from the filled dough pastries foundon every street corner in Israel,these hugely popular films portrayed the – often comedic – struggle ofimmigrants from North African countries, such as Morocco,Yemen and Iraq, to fit into the European society found in Israel at thetime.

The difficulties, hardships and confusion of theimmigrants was portrayed most famously in Israel’s firstAcademy Award-nominated film, SallahShabati, which tells the story of a newcomer from Yemen, played byChaim Topol (who went on to win great acclaim for his role as Tevye the Milkmanin the 1971 musical Fiddler on the Roof.)

The movie, which was made by first time directorEphraim Kishon, became a local smash hit and was nominated for “Best ForeignFilm” at the 1965 Academy Awards. (Another Kishon film, The Policeman (HaShoter), was nominated for an Oscar in 1972. Although it didnot win, it took home a Golden Globe award and accolades from a number of filmfestivals including best foreign film in Barcelonaand best director at the esteemed Monte Carlofilm festival.)

These early films, which have become cult classics, arestill influencing Israeli movies today. In 2004, Avi Nesher,who directed and produced the 1978 hit The Band (HaLakha),wrote, directed and produced the box office hit TurnLeft At The End Of The World (Sof HaOlamSmola). With its portrayal of a group of Moroccan and Indian immigrants in the Negevdesert – the end of the world of the title – Nesher’s film is a modern take onthe films of 40 years ago.

Like in the heyday Boureka genre, the Israeli filmindustry is still looking at “the other,” but today’s films are a far cry fromtheir predecessors of the 1960s. While no Israeli film has won an award at theOscars, nine films have been honored with a nomination in the “Best ForeignFilm” category. The most recent film to be entered for an Academy Award was Ajami,which was the first Israeli Oscar-nominated movie in which most of the dialoguewas spoken in Arab.

From humble beginnings, the Israeli film industry hasdeveloped into a strong force on the international entertainment scene. Althoughthe current crop of movies are well worth seeing, to really understand theroots of Israeli cinema – and culture – check out some of the classics such as Halfon HillDoesn't Answer (Giv'at Halfon Eina Ona), a satire about the Israel DefenceForces; The Big Dig (Taalat Blaumilch)another Kishon comedy about a lunatic with a penchant for digging who turnsAllenby Street in Tel Aviv into a canal; or Avanti Popolo,an anti-war move that portrays the journey of two Egyptian soldiers making theirway home to Cairo after the Six Day War of 1967.