Category — Authors

“Waltz with Bashir” is director Ari Folman’s autobiographical documentary about a soldier’s pilgrimage to remember his service in the first Lebanese war. Countless interviews with former comrades help to jog Folman’s memory; slowly bits and pieces of his experiences surface, finally culminating in the monumental realization that he played an active role in the 1982 massacre in Sabra and Shatila.

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source: www.baruch.cuny.edu, photo by Marion Ettlinger

It begins much like any other show.  There are introductions outlining the point of the evening, there are forgettable speeches received with light applauses, and there are refreshments devoured before the arrival of most guests.  Yet, amidst all this sits a woman with an air of confidence and self-acknowledgment, knowing full well that all these arrangements have been made in her honor.  In that crowd of dozens, it is easy to point out Francine Prose, the Fall 2008 Sidney Harman Writer-in-Residence. [Read more →]

Ari Folman’s film Waltz with Bashir is a bizarre and intriguing animated film regarding certain events that occurred during Folman’s life. The movie opens with the scene of menacing dogs, foaming at the mouth, running through the streets of an undisclosed city. This perplexing scene is just enough to spark the viewer’s interest. The film draws on the life of the director and the events that occur are so unreal, that it would be hard for anyone to fabricate them if they tried. While there are many humorous and dreamlike moments, the topic however, is very serious. The film deals with the idea that war really does have an adverse effect on those who are directly touched by it whether they know it or not. [Read more →]

http://livingincinema.com/2008/05/15/cannes-2008-jour-deux/

Most people go to movies to get away from reality for a few hours, and to immerse themselves in a world of pretense. Waltz with Bashir is a movie made in Israel, and it was included in the Lincoln Center film festival. Film festivals show movies that are different from the average Hollywood film. The idea is that people can see movies that are from various cultures or genres. Waltz with Bashir is an animated documentary.

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Based on Yvonne Latty’s book In Conflict: Iraq War Veterans Speak Out on Duty, Loss and the Fight to Stay Alive, “In Conflict” vividly portrays the aftermath of sixteen Iraq war veterans whose lives have been drastically changed, mostly, for the worst. Adapted and directed by Douglas C. Wager, the play was a series of candid testimonies on the effects of the experience in Iraq. Several of them describe the unfortunate loss of limbs, the drastic toll the experience took on their daily lifestyles, and the insurmountable physical and mental pain. [Read more →]

Source: www.irenasvow.com

Terri Sue “Tovah” Feldshuh is the most acclaimed artist in the cast of ten performing in Dan Gordon’s Irena’s Vow. While the play succeeds in delivering a satisfying and occasionally chilling plot, the production fails to fully comprehend the true depth of its own characters and thus realize the narrative’s full potential. [Read more →]

Source: www.broadway.com

As Luther Billis and company declare what exactly is unlike anything else in the world while Nellie Forbush washes charming Emile de Becque out of her hair, it becomes obvious that spunk is something Rodgers’, Hammerstein’s, and Logan’s South Pacific delivers in spades.  Drawing from James A. Michener’s Tales of the South Pacific, Bartlett Sher’s endeavor is an enjoyable experience that fails to be anything more socially responsible. [Read more →]

It was over fifty years ago that James Michener wrote Tales of the South Pacific. It was fifty years ago that Michener’s play was first made into a movie. And now, Richard Pearce directs his own version of the critically acclaimed novel. Pearce’s musical adaptation of the book and Rodgers and Hammerstein’s play is impeccable. A wonderful cast, beautiful music, and a stunning setting, come together to create a great film portraying the hardships and tensions of life at war and away from home. [Read more →]

We have all heard Anne Frank’s famously tragic story, and Dan Gordon’s Irena’s Vow is just another “Anne Frank” story. It is a story based on a very serious matter, the heroic efforts of Christians putting their own life at stake to save the lives of Jews. I never lose interest in reading various accounts of this sad part of our history, and the text of Irena’s Vow was indeed a wonderful chronicle of Irene Gut Opdyke’s account of her role during the holocaust. However, the performance was just sub-par.
First and foremost, Michael Parva’s casting was not very accurate. Even so much as the main role of Irena, being played by highly esteemed Tovah Feldshuh, was not acted out at its best. Although Feldshuh’s techniques of sharp breathe intakes and quivering lips definitely added to the emotions that the play was supposed to convey, it just was not strong enough. [Read more →]

Portraying a passionate subject about a passionate war, “In Conflict” puts the Iraq War into perspective in this Off-Broadway production. Yvonne Latty, the brains behind this play, captures the personal accounts of seventeen soldiers who serve or have served in the war, and brings them to the public. There is much confusion and hidden information from the American people about the war. People do not know what to believe anymore. Are we winning? Are we losing? Are we doing the right thing? With its wonderful script, casting and setting, “In Conflict” succeeds at conveying the ambiguities of the war and exposing them to the public eye.
As the play starts off, images of the American flag can be seen on the stage and on the flat- screens around it. Truly, a sense of patriotism is evoked in the audience. A group of seventeen soldiers enters the scene, and throughout the two hours of the play, we listen to each of their accounts of their role in the Iraq War. As involved or not involved in politics and international affairs as you may be, the stories grip your interest immediately. A combination of deeply emotional and sad stories and ones that are courageous and uplifting create a great balance which really gives the play a good flow. In addition to the scripting, the music during the acts sets the mood as well. [Read more →]