AJFF: America
The Atlanta Jewish Film Festival returns for its 23rd anniversary with a slate of compelling, emotional and thought-provoking films.
This Israeli romantic melodrama, Ofir Raul Grazier’s follow up to his Ophir-winning The Cakemaker (AJFF 2018), is absolutely compelling viewing. Michael Moshonov, who played so convincingly the autistic son in Here We Are (AJFF 2021), here stars as a taciturn Israeli swim coach who has fled to Chicago to escape a miserable past. After his father’s death, his reunion in Haifa with his best friend Yotam and his Ethiopian-Israeli fiancé Iris (Ofri Biterman and Oshrat Ingedashet, both excellent) leads to unfortunate events and emotional complications.
These are portrayed with remarkable insight, compassion and restraint thanks to the script and performances. (Rarely has deep breathing been so essential to the flourishing—or even emotional health–of a film’s characters.) Grazier’s script is notable for its expert ability to deliver important pieces of backstory in a gradual manner, and cinematographer Omri Aloni’s stunning cinematography takes its cue from the bright hues of Iris’s flower shop.
There is a very good reason why this deeply affecting film earned a nomination for Best Israeli Film at this year’s Jerusalem Film Festival.
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