WALTZ WITH BASHIR
WALTZ WITH BASHIR |
 |
Unnverved by shaky, incoherent memories of his military service, Ari Folman begins investigating the past and his time in Beiruit. | score 4 |
moviereview rates films from 1 (unwatchable) to 5 (unmissable) |
| FIND A MOVIEREVIEW |
| Cast Documentary Director Ari Folman Screenwriter Ari Folman Country Israel (subtitles) Rating / Running Time MA / 96 minutes Australian Release September 2008 Official Site (c) moviereview
2006-2008
ABN 72 775 390 361 |
In
1982, hundreds of Palestinian men, women and children were massacred in
refugee camps following the assassination of Lebanese president-elect
Bashir Gemayel. Director Ari Folman was serving in Beirut at the time
but memory is a fickle thing and twenty years later, all he can recall
is a series of discordant images. This need to know forms the basis for
his ground breaking documentary – memory’s unreliable
participation in the process of history, and the selective nature of
memory itself. Galvanized by the nightmarish dreams of a colleague, Folman comes to realise he can no longer make sense of his military recollection and seeks answers from a number of sources – psychologists and ex-soldiers, through conversation and visitation – in the hope of rebuilding his memory. These interviews were filmed and used as reference for the hallucinatory, animé-styled drawings that distinguish his film. Waltz With Bashir is a strikingly original production. From the disturbing opening to the alarming close, it approaches the realm of the documentary in new and stimulating ways. It is also extraordinarily beautiful. The eye-catching, comic-book technique commands attention and empowers Folman by enabling him to resensitise audiences and pull them deeper into his story in ways that conventional methods could never do. Steady concentration is required as he blurs the line between reality, dramatisation and delirium with a wilful freedom. It’s easy to loose sight of Folman’s purpose and become lost in the emotional turbulence he generates, for Waltz With Bashir is a deeply emotional film. And appropriately so. Part history lesson, part exploration of human frailty, it’s a stunning achievement. // COLIN FRASER |