Running time: 93 mins.
SAMUEL Maoz’s bravura depiction of war deservedly won the coveted Golden Lion at the 2009 Venice Film Festival.
Shot from the perspective of a four-strong team of men within a tank during the First Lebanon War, the film begins in June 1982 with tank commander Assi (Itay Tiran) preparing to lead his men — ammunitions loader Hertzl (Oshri Cohen), gun man Shmulik (Yoav Donat) and driver Yigal (Michael Moshonov) — into hostile territory.
What begins as a routine mission descends into carnage and tensions flare within the tank, leading to bickering between the soldiers.
An Israeli commander, Jamil (Zohar Strauss), leaves a Syrian captive (Dudu Tassa) in the bowels of the tank to ensure his safe passage through the war zone.
The prisoner’s presence exacerbates divisions between Assi and his team and the superior officer struggles to maintain firm control in the face of challenges to his authority.
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