Yoram Kaniuk Movies
Author Yoram Kaniuk's celebrated 1971 novel concerning a charismatic yet questionably sane Holocaust survivor comes to the screen in this dark drama starring Jeff Goldblum, Willem Dafoe, and Derek Jacobi. In the years before World War II, Adam Stein (Goldblum) was a Berlin entertainer who thrilled audiences with extravagant circus acts and spectacular magic tricks. Later, when Hitler took power and Europe was plunged into chaos, Stein and his family were locked away in a concentration camp presided over by the sadistic Commandant Klein (Dafoe). The only reason Stein survived those dreadful years was because he managed to become the commandant's personal "dog," entertaining his captors even as his wife and daughter are marched off to die. Flash-forward to 1961, when Stein is a patient at an Israeli mental hospital for Holocaust survivors. Seemingly able to read minds, Stein confounds head doctor Nathan Gross (Jacobi) with the question "Who brought a dog in here?" Despite Gross' vehement denial that any such animal is on the premises, Stein soon tracks the scent to a young boy who has spent his entire youth locked in a basement and chained to a wall. Over time, Stein and the boy see in each other something undeniably familiar, and the two kindred spirits set out on a remarkable journey together. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jeff Goldblum, Willem Dafoe, (more)
- 1987
Based on a popular Israeli war novel and set during the country's 1948 War of Independence within besieged Jerusalem, this symbolic, gripping film from noted director Amos Guttman offers an unflinching, reality-tinged look at the trauma and pain of those who suffered to create their country. It is also a strange love story between a pretty volunteer nurse and those in the temporary hospital ward where she works. The "hospital" is actually an abandoned monastery and her ward is located in the belfry. She became a volunteer following the death of her lover, a soldier. Among the injured, the patients have managed to form a hierarchy and two sometimes-rowdy young fellows have become the leaders. Also in the ward is Himmo, a blinded soldier who has had most of his limbs amputated without anesthesia, something not available in the besieged city. When the "leaders" see their new nurse, they immediately decide they are in love with her. Then Himmo is moved into their ward. The only words he can speak are "shoot me, shoot me" and everyone, even Himmo's brother Lavi, knows that he will soon die. At first the nurse is frightened of Himmo and his horrible injuries, but then she learns from one of the leaders, Himmo's best friend, that the mutilated man in the bed was once called "Himmo, King of Jerusalem," and was a charismatic ladies man. Intrigued, the nurse begins to find herself somehow drawn to the former "king." Soon fascination turns to something close to obsession, and when she begins treating the other patients with only perfunctory professionalism, resentment begins to build. The tension reaches its peak when Himmo gets moved to the bed nearest the door, the spot reserved for those about to die. The nurse moves her own bed next to his. One night she is tenderly caring for the suffering Himmo when tensions explode. Though Himmo has unwittingly created resentment, he has also created a difficult dilemma. Though in terrible pain and obviously desperate to die, his body refuses to give up, causing the nurse and the ward to agonize about whether or not they have the courage to end his life themselves. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Alona Kimchi, Amiram Gavriel, (more)
- 1981
In an embattled Israel, director and co-author Yaki Yosha (with Yoram Kaniuk), has come up with a successful pacifist film that is not political -- a most unusual accomplishment. The story is based on Kaniuk's book "The Last Jew," and its subject matter would apply to any war-ravaged area of the world, at any time in history. The ex-soldier Boaz (Shraga Harpaz) has just returned from battle, struggling with the guilt of a survivor remembering those who died -- morose and taciturn, he finds it difficult to adjust. One day he runs into an ex-teacher, the father of one of his buddies killed in the war, and the teacher supplicates him to do an "album" of his memories of the dead son. Boaz reluctantly complies, mainly out of consideration for the father's own emotional needs. He is rewarded by the grateful father, and when this simple act gets around, he finds himself doing more albums for people and miserably making money on the activity -- like a vulture feeding off the dead. The people he meets are real, grieving for their losses, and so Boaz finds himself put in an untenable position: he cannot say no, but saying yes has made life that much harder for him. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Shraga Harpaz, Shimon Finkel, (more)
- 1978
After years in the U.S., an Israeli artist returns home. He discovers that his father is terminally ill and that he has lost touch with his homeland. He begins to journey around and decides that he should make a film about his country. Among the many people he meets is a gigolo who makes love to women who are ignored by their spouses and collects statistics about prostitution for a hobby. As he travels and films, he recovers parts of himself and his past. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Gedalia Besser, Arik Lavi, (more)
