A mix of styles and tones makes for a provocative and heartbreaking tale about people in a seemingly never-ending state of crisis
Sony Pictures Classics
Samuel Maoz’s Israeli drama, “Foxtrot,” is willfully confusing, emotionally chaotic, and occasionally anarchic. It makes complete sense from one angle, but no sense at all from another. In other words, it reflects its subject perfectly.
As the movie opens, Michael Feldmann (Israeli superstar Lior Ashkenazi, “Norman: The Moderate Rise and Tragic Fall of a New York Fixer”) has just learned that his soldier son was killed on duty. But is Jonathan (Yonaton Shiray) actually dead? No. Maybe. Yes?
Maoz (“Lebanon”) isn’t going to make this easy for anyone. He shoots the story in three uncomfortably interconnected acts, with multiple perspectives and styles, keeping us constantly on edge and off-balance.
Also Read: ‘Foxtrot’ Director on Israeli Culture Minister’s Attacks: ‘Struggle in Israel Is for Freedom of Speech’
In the first segment, the Feldmanns are both visually and literally alienated, with Michael numbly uncomprehending as military officers handle a familiar procedure with ruthless efficiency. As soon as they arrive, they have news (of the death), information (it was a noble sacrifice) and orders (funeral arrangements are already being prepared; parents just need to show up, and perhaps bring an amusing anecdote to share).
Michael’s wife, Daphna (a wonderful Sarah Adler, “Marie Antoinette”), is bureaucratically tranquilized before she can get hysterical, a response the officers automatically expect and want to avoid. But it’s Michael who eventually loses control, infuriated by the invasive, pat condescension of everyone around him.
His response is, of course, utterly reasonable under the circumstances. And yet everyone around him calls him emotional, crazy, psychotic. Daphna urges him to calm down; the officers are disgusted by his grief-driven rage. And they are especially infuriated when he insists that Jonathan — or his body? — be returned home, immediately. He has every right to want to see his son, doesn’t he? Does he?
Also Read: Oscars to Invite More Voters for Foreign Language Nominees, Allow International Streaming (Exclusive)
Meanwhile, it seems that Jonathan is actually stuck in a quiet and remote border area, patrolling his station. It’s a life of endless monotony. And also endless tension, where nothing happens and absolutely everything happens.
He and his fellow soldiers — who are kids, really — live in a rotting shipping container, a sinking (and heavy-handed) symbol of the war they’re fighting. They sit around waiting for Palestinian cars to come by, so they can check IDs and let strangers pass on their way. They play video games, and talk about centerfolds, and make terrible, tragic mistakes with the potential to ruin many lives.
Finally (or not, exactly) we return to Michael and Daphna. They are alternately bonded and isolated by sorrow, in a manner that feels both unexpected and inevitable. This scene is intentionally intimate in a way the others weren’t, giving both actors a beautiful, heartbreaking showcase. (The film swept the Israeli Oscars, and is the country’s submission for a Best Foreign Language Academy Award.)
Also Read: Oscars Break Another Record With 92 Foreign Language Contenders
Any one of Maoz’s styles could have made for a strong film. But the combination of straightforward realism, deadpan surrealism, historical horror and domestic tragedy is harrowingly impactful. It’s as if Maoz realized that a single, sustained tone couldn’t possibly do justice to the vastness of the subject.
Death is everywhere in “Foxtrot”: it’s in the blood of the young, the old, the Israelis, the Palestinians. They talk about it, live with it, know it, own it. It’s terrible to see. But it doesn’t exist in a vacuum. There is also humor and love, laughter and dancing. And most of all, there is a burning wish to understand the incomprehensible. To make sense of so much pain and guilt and anger and resentment, when the end result is so clearly devastating for everyone.
Maoz doesn’t pretend to have those answers. But he and his outstanding cast make it impossible to look away from the questions.
11 WTF Academy Invites: From Lou Ferrigno to Terry Crews (Photos)
The Motion Picture Academy made amazing strides in its goal to diversify membership — but some of their invites this year are questionable. Read on for TheWrap’s tally of oddballs, and people you would think have been members for years.
Terry Crews The Old Spice spokesman has had an impressive if not niche acting career. Still a bit of a head-scratcher, but the man brings a ton of joy and muscles wherever he pops up, so we’ll take it. Getty Images
Lou Ferrigno The kitschy ’70s start («The Incredible Hulk» TV series) mostly takes B-movie action roles or plays heightened versions of himself («I Love You, Man»). But we’ll welcome him with a smile because we know what happens when he gets angry. Getty Images
Tom Felton With all due respect to child stars who chug along into adulthood as actors, including «Harry Potter»‘s platinum blonde baby villain, this seems like a stretch — or perhaps a nod to the iconic books turning 20 this year. Getty Images
Rupert Grint Same thing goes here for Grint, the lovable Ron Weasely. Getty Images
Betty White How in GOD’s NAME was this show business legend not already an Academy member? But this is another example of «Its’ Never Too Late» in the 95-year-old’s career.
Also Read: Oscars Hit Goal of Doubling Non-White Members Three Years Early Getty Images
Debbie Allen is best known for playing Lydia in the iconic film «Fame,» but she’s long been a choreographer for the Oscars telecast. She’s essentially the Bruce Vilanch of dance at the Academy, so this is a long-overdue internal promotion. Getty Images
Bonnie Hunt was a national treasure during her late-aughts TV show and a rare female producer and star, though she’s mostly been putting in voice work on animated projects like «Cars» for the past decade.
Also Read: Oscars Hit Goal of Doubling Non-White Members Three Years Early Getty Images
Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis These R&B icons, most famous for their shepherding of Janet Jackson’s most memorable albums, might seem curious additions to the film academy. The men have put in hundreds of songs on movie soundtracks over the years, however. Getty Images
Jeanne Triplehorn Don’t get us wrong, we’re obsessed with Triplehorn. «Sliding Doors»? Amazing.
