Bikur Ha-Tizmoret (2007)

Director:

Eran Kolirin

Writer:

Eran Kolirin (writer)

Release Date:

13 September 2007 (Israel)

Genre:

Comedy | Drama | Music

Tagline:

Once-not long ago-a small Egyptian police band arrived in Israel. Not many remember this...It wasn't that important.

Plot:

A band comprised of members of the Egyptian police force head to Israel to play at the inaugural ceremony of an Arab arts center, only to find themselves lost in the wrong town.

Plot Keywords:

Israel | Orchestra | Lost | Bus | Musical Instrument

Awards:

41 wins & 9 nominations

Cast

Sasson Gabai	...	Lieutenant-colonel Tawfiq Zacharya
Ronit Elkabetz	...	Dina
Saleh Bakri	...	Haled
Khalifa Natour	...	Simon
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Shlomi Avraham	...	Papi
Uri Gavriel	...	Avrum
Imad Jabarin	...	Major-general Camal Abdel Azim
Ahuva Keren	...	Lea
François Khell	...	Makram
Hisham Khoury	...	Fauzi
Tarak Kopty	...	Iman
Rinat Matatov	...	Yula
Rubi Moskovitz	...	Itzik
Hilla Sarjon	...	Iris
Eyad Sheety	...	Saleh
Tomer Yosef	...	Ars

Also Known As:

La visite de la fanfare (France)
The Band's Visit (International: English title)

MPAA:

Rated PG-13 for brief strong language.

Runtime:

87 min

Country:

Israel | France | USA

Language:

English | Arabic | Hebrew

Colour:

Colour

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

USA:PG-13 | Canada:PG | South Korea:12 | Switzerland:7 (canton of Geneva) | Switzerland:7 (canton of Vaud) | Germany:o.Al. | France:U | Singapore:NC-16 | Finland:S | Hong Kong:IIA | Ireland:12A | Argentina:Atp | Australia:M | New Zealand:M | Iceland:L | Sweden:Btl

Filming Locations:

Yeruham, Negev Desert, Israel

Company:

July August Productions

Trivia:

The movie was selected to be Israel's Official Submission to the Best Foreign Language Film Category of The 80th Annual Academy Awards (2008) (TV), but it was disqualified by AMPAS because more than 50% of the film's dialogue was found to be in English, as opposed to Arabic and Hebrew. After an unsuccessful appeal, Israel sent Beaufort (2007) instead.

Goofs:

Continuity: When speaking in Arabic, Tawfiq pronounces some words with the Egyptian Arabic pronunciation, and some words with the Palestinian Arabic pronunciation. Being an Egyptian, he should talk in Egyptian Arabic dialect all the time.

Movie Connections:

Features Ha-Shoter Azulai (1970)

Soundtrack:

My Funny Valentine

an amusing, small detour on the highway of life

The band, an group of eight Egyptians looking slightly stilted and uncomfortable but always professional, are dropped off at the Israeli airport, but there is no bus to drive them. They eventually get one, but it drops them off in the middle of nowhere. They walk to a local restaurant/dive that's about as empty as the rest of the small town - it's the wrong town, of course, as one letter was off in the name of the town of the band-mates inquired about. So it's time to stay overnight in this sleepy little desert town before things get straightened out to their destination.

With that simple premise, Eran Kolirin creates an atmosphere that seems like the awkward, piercingly funny but "low-key" (in other words not overly dramatic) characters in a Jarmusch film, and despite the 'small' nature of the story, that there isn't very much to go in its 80 minute running time, a lot can be explored through interaction. This is probably not a 'great' film, but it is a great example for those skeptical that an Israeli film has to have some political context or subtext or whatever. The only scene that has the hint of unease between Israel and Arab is an already warm, strange scene at a dinner table where an Israeli man recollects singing "Summertime" as everyone at the table joins in. There are looks exchanged here and there, but nothing to suggest unrest of the expected sort. This story could take place in just about anywhere.

By aiming things towards the little details of people relating on terms of friendly interaction, of the light dances of affection like between the boy who "hears the sea" and the "gloomy girl" at the skating rink (probably the single funniest scene without a word spoken, all movement), the first-time director creates a little play on people who live and/or work in a marginalized part of the world. That doesn't mean they're poor or ignorant, far from it. But it's a sweet view into people we otherwise wouldn't know much about (after all, who makes light, wise comedies on the misadventures of a police band from Egypt?) The performances are endearing, the music has the ring of not taking much too seriously, and melodrama is kept at a low (if not, in the underlying sense, melancholy). Only a few scenes (like the running story strand of the officer and the other guy waiting at the pay phone) fall sort of flat based on the tone already sent.