artdirector@sfreporter.com
Our view of the decades-long Gaza conflict ebbs and flows as news cycles shift, despite it being a real part of life for anyone living there. Those who are particularly sensitive to sharp words against Palestine may want to emotionally prepare before heading to the screening of Burning Land at the Unitarian Universalist Congregation on Feb. 23.
In his feature film debut, Israeli director Liran Shitrit takes us back in time to the West Bank in 2001 with color-rich cinematography. He also thrusts us into the world of right-wing Israeli extremism by way of protagonist Yair (Assaf Hertz), a delinquent runaway who finds a new home among a group of boys with outward extreme views who forcefully take a small hill from nearby Palestinians. Yair’s new pals help him enroll at the local yeshiva and introduce him to Rabbi Grunberg (Nathan Ravitz), who discreetly pushes the group of “hill boys” to embrace their settler views. Both external and internal conflict toss him as he finds camaraderie with his new friends yet is embraced with compassion by his new employer and vineyard owner, Naomi (Yael Levental).
Burning Land reminds us, not that the more things change, the more they stay the same, but that sometimes things just don’t change. Shitrit puts extremist views on full display, but also asks audiences to at least try to acknowledge even the most hateful views are part of, if not a defect, of the human condition. He shows how complicated humans can be and how easily those around us can shape our views. Burning Land offers up some spectacular views of northern Israel and the very real emotions of those who live there, even if lacking a clear view of the difference between right and wrong. But then again, we all have trouble discerning the difference sometimes.
6
+Stunning landscapes; character study
-Murky message; rushed resolution
Burning Land
Directed by Shitrit
With Hertz and Ravitz
Unitarian Universalist Congregation, NR, 88 min.
