One of Israel's Classics -get it before VHS becomes obsolete | The House on Chelouche Street [VHS]

VHS: The House on Chelouche Street [VHS] | Gila Almagor, Chaim Banai

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	• The House on Chelouche Street [VHS] Gila Almagor, Chaim Banai Henstooth Video, 1998 average customer review:based on 3 reviews view larger image
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a minor classic

I came upon this film quite by accident and only regret I didn't see it when it was new. Without either scmaltz or cynicism it depicts life in a Tel Aviv neighborhood in the period contemporaneous with Israel's emergence as a state. A firsrate social document it points to ethnic and ideological differences particularly between left and right that continue to clash in present day Israel. The acting is superb, the situations always believable, and the warmth, humor, and song, from Shoshana Damari on the radio to the everyday singing in several languages of the actors, is also much like the Israel I've known and photographed. The confrontations between British soldiers, who invade their homes in the middle of the night to seek out "terrorists" reminds one of the present situation in the territories and, whatever one's politics - and in Israel this is the very air one breathes - on the most basic human level these scenes depict what it really feels like. Just as poignant, toward movie's end and in the face of the violence breaking out as war commences, the movie's middle aged heroine declares that she will not leave and no matter what will not become a refugee. Needless to say it's a firstrate coming of age story for its fifteen year old central character.

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One of Israel's Classics -get it before VHS becomes obsolete

I bought this film in video because I enjoyed it when it first came out nearly 30 years ago. It is true that the subtitles are at times difficult to read, but this is not just about pre-independence Palestine and the coming of age of an adolescent boy; it is the struggle of an Egyptian Jewish family trying to fit into a foreign culture (modern Israel). Egyptian Jews brought with them a rich heritage. Sammi knows several languages, and has a passion for books - he loves to read until late at night - but he isn't allowed to pursue his passion because he and his siblings and widowed mother all live in one room, and his mother is forced to rise before dawn and clean people's homes for a living. Sammi is ashamed that his mother has to take menial jobs to support the family, and he agrees to drop out of school and work in a factory, but he suddenly finds himself caught up in the violent upheaval of exploited workers being organized by the fledgling labor union, the Histadrut. Sammi pretends to be going to work every day, but in reality, the workers are on strike, and he sneaks off to read books. British military police are everywhere, enforcing curfews, and breaking into private homes (using local Arab residents as interpreters) to look for suspected members of the underground defense force. Their lives were very shaky at all times and it is a very interesting film.

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