Eran Kolirin Movies
- 2011
A man is startled to discover how different the world can look from a different perspective in this offbeat drama from writer and director Eran Kolirin. Oded (Rotem Keinan) is a physics instructor who is working towards a graduate degree; he's married to Tami (Sharon Tal), who has just received a degree in architecture. Oded and Tami lead lives that are ordered and regimented to the point that nearly nothing surprises them anymore. However, one day Oded has to return to their apartment in the afternoon after forgetting something, and realized he's never seen the flat at this time of day before. Looking at his home in a new light, while his wife mistakenly sleeps through a job interview, is somehow revelatory to Oded, and he begins challenging his daily routine in different ways -- taking a different bus route, looking intently into corners, stopping elevators on floors he doesn't normally visit. Oded's new fascination with things he's ignored causes him to slowly drift away from Tami, but he finds a friend in Yoav (Dov Navon), who lives nearby, and together they find curiously satisfying adventures in the seemingly ordinary details of life that they're overlooked. Hahithalfut (aka The Exchange) was an official selection at the 2011 Venice International Film Festival. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi
When the Ceremonial Police Band of Alexandria, Egypt, journeys to a gig in Israel, they can hardly anticipate getting stuck in a rut. But upon arrival at the Israeli airport, their hosts and transportation fail to show. So begins first-time director Eran Kolirin's fish-out-of-water comedy The Band's Visit (aka Bikur Hatizmoret, 2007). Trapped in a middle-of-nowhere desert town, the group members try to figure out what to do and where to go. In desperation, two of the musicians -- conductor Tawfiq (Sasson Gabai) and playboy Haled (Saleh Bakri) -- accept an invitation from sexy café owner Dina (Ronit Elkabetz) to bunk at her residence, and seemingly within no time, the unlikeliest of interracial (Israeli-Palestinian) romances begin to blossom -- not only between Tawfiq and Dina, but between Haled and local wallflower Papi (Shlomi Avraham), whose night together at a roller disco turns into a veritable comedy of errors. Meanwhile, the remainder of the bandmembers room with local resident Itzik's (Rubi Moscovich) family, which produces overwhelming conflict and innumerable tensions. As the days roll on, the co-mingling of Egyptian bandmembers and Israeli residents imparts each individual with insights into his cultural identity and that of the others. ~ Nathan Southern, Rovi
- Starring:
- Sasson Gabai, Ronit Elkabetz, (more)
Rating Systems
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