Farewell Column, directed by Ronnie Ninio, starring Dror Keren, is about serious issues facing Israeli society today. The entire film takes place during the course of 24 hours in the life of Carmi, a well-known political columnist, who is married with two teenage children.
Produced during the height of the covid-19 pandemic, and shot
in black & white, the film interweaves and juxtaposes two parallel issues. The
first is on the personal level -- how the covid shut-downs have affected family
relationships, such as his relationship with his wife and children, and the tension
that is building between his aging parents who are cooped up in their small
apartment. The second is on the national
level – the anger on the streets between the right and the left, between those
who are demonstrating against Bibi (and scenes in the film are shot against the
background of real demonstrations on Balfour St. in Jerusalem) and those who
support him, and how Carmi’s burden of responsibility leads him to be critical
of the government and to write about the need for change in a country that is
being led by a corrupt and indicted prime minister.
Still relevant today – the film could have been made during
the period of the uprising against the judicial coup or it could have been made
this week, during the period of anti-Bibi demonstrations by all of those who
want the hostages to come home and the government to be replaced. It’s strange how some things never change.
Although a bit slow-moving, Farewell Column is
a serious political drama about critical contemporary issues.
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