Ayelet Zurer
Angels and Demons re-teams director Ron Howard and star Tom Hanks for the sequel to their international blockbuster adaptation of Dan Brown's novel The Da Vinci Code. Although the book Angels and Demons was written before the novel The Da Vinci Code, the movie transpires after the events of the earlier movie. Hanks stars as professor Robert Langdon, the most respected symbologist in the United States, who uses his knowledge in order to decode a symbol on the skin of a murder victim. The clues put him on the trail of an international conspiracy involving the Catholic Church. Ewan McGregor and Ayelet Zurer also star in the Sony Pictures production. ~ Perry Seibert, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Tom Hanks, Ayelet Zurer, (more)
- 2008
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)
Forest Whitaker, Dennis Quaid, William Hurt, and Matthew Fox star in director Pete Travis' Rashomon-style thriller in which an assassination attempt on the president of the United States is detailed from five unique perspectives. As the president arrives in Salamanca, gunshots ring out. An American tourist (Whitaker) has captured footage of the would-be assassin on videotape, and now, as the stories of the other four witnesses unfold, each essential piece of the puzzle quickly falls into place. Only when all of the stories are told will the chilling truth to this shocking crime finally emerge. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Dennis Quaid, Matthew Fox, (more)
Author Anne Michaels's poetic novel comes to the screen courtesy of director Jeremy Podeswa in this period drama concerning a Holocaust survivor who remains eternally haunted by the uncertain fate of his beloved sister. Athos (Rade Sherbedgia) is an archeologist conducting a dig in Nazi-occupied Poland. When Athos discovers a seven-year-old boy named Jakob (Robbie Kay) hiding near the work site, he smuggles the frightened boy back to Greece and promises to shelter him when the Nazis come knocking there as well. Having previously witnessed the brutal massacre of his family at the hands of Hitler's henchmen, Jakob longs to find out what fate befell his sister, Bella (Nina Dobrev) -- who wasn't executed with the majority of his other relatives but subsequently disappeared without a trace. After the war, Athos and Jakob emigrate to Toronto in hopes of starting a new life. But even after all these years, Jakob (Stephen Dillane) can't seem to shake the grief of losing his family and not knowing what ever became of Bella. Later, when Jakob marries the radiant Alex (Rosamund Pike), the bright-eyed beauty does her best to illuminate the dark corners within her husband's soul. To maintain one's connection to ghosts requires a certain shunning of the living, however, and only when Jakob discovers the strength to let go of his painful past will he finally be able to move forward into the future. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Stephen Dillane, Rade Sherbedgia, (more)
Much as Steven Spielberg followed 1993's special-effects blockbuster Jurassic Park with a far more downbeat and personal project later the same year, Schindler's List, in 2005 after tearing up the box office with War of the Worlds the director closed out the year with a powerful and thoughtful drama about the human costs of international terrorism. The 1972 Olympics in Munich, Germany, were supposed to be a peaceful gathering of outstanding athletes from around the world, but on September 5, the games took a sinister turn when eight masked Palestinian terrorists invaded the Olympic village, killing two Israeli athletes and abducting nine others. The kidnappers demanded safe passage out of Germany in addition to the release of Arab prisoners in Israeli and German prisons, but when they arrived at the Munich airport they were met by German police and military forces, and in the melee that followed, all nine hostages were killed. In the wake of the killings, the Israeli government gave Mossad, the nation's intelligence agency, a special assignment -- to track down and eliminate the Palestinians responsible for the death of the Israeli athletes. A young and idealistic Mossad agent (Eric Bana) is assigned to the four-man unit created to wipe out the Olympic terrorists, but while he believes in serving his country, as their bloody work goes on he begins to buckle under the weight of his work and wonders if he can morally justify his nation's acts of revenge. Munich also stars Geoffrey Rush, Daniel Craig, Mathieu Kassovitz, and Ciarán Hinds. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Eric Bana, Daniel Craig, (more)
Israeli filmmaker Savi Gabizon directs the tragi-comic drama Ha-Asonot Shel Nina, also released as Nina's Tragedies (A Very Sad Comedy). Teenaged boy Nadav (Aviv Elkabeth) is secretly in love with his beautiful Aunt Nina (Ayelet Zurer). When her husband dies and his parents get divorced, Nadav is more than willing to go live with her. However, many strange things start to happen just after he arrives. Nadav's estranged father (Yoram Hattab) suddenly wants to reconnect with him after many years. Also, the mourning Nina is pursued by a photographer named Avinoam (Alon Aboutbul). Nina's Tragedies won several awards at the Jerusalem Film Festival before its U.S. premiere at the Sundance Film Festival in 2004. ~ Andrea LeVasseur, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ayelet Zurer, Yoram Hatav, (more)
Director Benny Torati's bittersweet ensemble film Desperado Square spins a tale of respect, long-lost loves and village history amongst a settlement of Greek Jews near Tel Aviv. On the one-year anniversary of the respected elder statesman Morris Mandabon's death -- and on the eve of a schedule memorial in his honor -- his eldest son, Nisim (Nir Levi), dreams that his late father is beckoning him to reopen the family movie theater that had closed several years previously. Drawing his brother, George (Sharon Reginyano), into the scheme, the two set out to fulfill their father's wish. Their mother, Signora (Yona Elian), provides fierce opposition, which intensifies when she learns that her sons intend to screen the sexually charged Bollywood film Sangam. She reacts as such due the film's portrayal of a love triangle that has more than a passing resemblance to her own life -- she was madly in love with Morris' brother, Avram (Mohammed Bakri), but was affianced to Morris through an arrangement of families. After her engagement to Morris, Avram disappeared in order to stay out of the way. And, to further complicate matters, Avram arrives in the settlement in order to participate in his brother's memorial. As a result, the family is forced to come to terms with its past, as well as revisioning its future. Desperado Square premiered in Israel in 2000 and was included in the programs of several Jewish film festivals in both the United States and abroad in 2001 and 2002. ~ Ryan Shriver, All Movie Guide
- 1997
Loosely based on a 1914 play by S. Ansky, this elaborate, ambitious, and unnerving fantasy from Israeli writer-director Yossi Somer juxtaposes a Romeo and Juliet romantic tragedy with a modernized tale of a "Dybbuk," a mischievous spirit from Yiddish folklore capable of releasing repressed desires in innocent young girls. The story focuses on the ill-fated romance between Hanan (Yehzekel Lazarov) and Lea (Ayelet Zurer) who, though promised for marriage by their families, are torn apart by the rift between their fathers' social and religious backgrounds. After attempts to win the favor of Lea's Orthodox father, Hanan joins a yeshiva and begins an intensive study of the enigmatic and complex mysticism of the Kabbalah, leading to surreal visions revealing his true spiritual link to Lea, his soulmate. Spurred by this newfound wisdom, Hanan renews his passionate pursuit of Lea... and not even death can prevent him from fulfilling his destiny. Equal parts supernatural horror, classic romance, and political allegory, this one-of-a-kind film is certain to provoke strong reactions from viewers, who will either be overwhelmed by its shocking imagery or mesmerized by its intricate, multi-layered storytelling. ~ Cavett Binion, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ayelet Zurer, Yehezkel Lazarov, (more)
- 1994
This Israeli comedy was shot in Tel Aviv. Itzik Finkelstein is a loser. Like many losers, he prefers blaming others for his condition rather than accepting responsibility for himself. A grown man, still living with his mother, Finkelstein is the classic hustler. As a get-rich scheme, he purchases 50,000 novelty key-chains depicting monks with large erections. Unfortunately, no one wants these novelties, and Finkelstein is devastated until one of the key-chains, which is really a six-foot genie in disguise, springs to life and offers to grant Itzik his wishes. No one else but Finkelstein can see this genie. With the help of the genie, Itzik seeks revenge on those "responsible" for his miserable life. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Moshe Ivgi, Esteban Gottfried, (more)
- 1991
Wanting to learn more about his Jewish heritage, a French philosophy professor moves to an Israeli kibbutz located near the Golan Heights in 1965. He is followed by a non-Jewish former student who abandons her aspirations of becoming a concert violinist to be with him. Two years pass, and professor Sacha is joined by three more former students who have come down to celebrate the lovely violinist's 20th birthday. Unfortunately, the tensions that led up to the Six Day's War are rapidly escalating and Sacha is drafted into the military. The night of the party, one of the guests shows home movies of their lives in Paris. Sacha cannot help but feel guilty pangs while watching for the films contain scenes of his love Myriam, the woman who committed suicide after he broke up with her. Her death is one of the reasons he left Paris. It is with this guilt roiling around inside that Sacha goes to war leading to the story's bittersweet conclusion. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Richard Berry, Sophie Marceau, (more)
