Guest blogger, Jeremy Leigh, has been working on his top six Israeli films for at least a month. We wanted to explain the difference between Top Five Lists and Top Six Lists, but he’s a professor at HUC, so we figure he knows best…

Here is Jeremy Leigh’s Top Six List of Israeli Films:

1.     אביבה אהובתי / Aviva Ahuvati (2007)

The ultimate ‘centre / periphery’ film, with a stunning performance by Assi Levi as a aspirant writer / low paid cook in a mass production kitchen, all the time holding her dysfunctional family together. From poverty stricken Tiberius she seeks affirmation of her talents as a writer from her teacher in Tel Aviv, a journey fraught with challenges. This film celebrates the underdog, but more importantly subverts the idea that the periphery cannot be the centre for culture.

2.     שנת אפס / Shnat Efes (2004)

Israeli cinema finally succeeds in making a complex film that is not about being Israeli.

3.     אבנתי פופולו / Avanti Popolo (1987)

Just hours after the ceasefire that ended the 6 Day War, two drunken Egyptians and three power drunk Israelis encounter each other in the Sinai desert. Given the fact this was made in 1986 and thus classified as a post Lebanon War I film, the significance of Rafi Boukaee’s film is all the more significant. The ‘other’ is not only exposed as human but also a moral challenger to the self confidence of the victorious Israeli.

4.     ביקור התזמורת  / Band’s Visit (2007)

Almost an Oscar nominee for Foreign Film category but too much English apparently. Strange really since Israelis and Egyptians, the stars of this superb film would hardly speak Hebrew to each other. This is a class A performance by acclaimed actors Ronit Alkabetz and Sasson Gabbai as a slightly lost soul (Alkabetz) and Egyptian band leader (Gabbai). Thankfully not allowed to be a cliched Arab – Israeli conflict film, it is an optimistic celebration of human solidarity.

5.     כנפיים שבורות  / Broken Wings (2002)

Nir Bergman’s touching and life affirming story of a family ‘on the edge’, struggling to cope with the death of the father / husband, whose senseless and avoidable death from a bee sting, is a powerful commentary on the nature of ‘Israeli death’. Stripped of any heroism, this backdrop to the film’s drama is made more powerful when one considers that it was made as suicide bombers were blowing themselves up in Israel’s cities.

6.     עבודה / Avoda (1935)

Admittedly this entry may be a rather geeky addition from an over keen Israel Studies teacher but it is a superb showcase for Zionist sweat and dedication. Made in 1935, this is a pioneer film that has superb production and camera work. One has to love a film whose ‘happy ending’ is the success of completion of an irrigation project.