Director: Eran Riklis
Starring: Stephen Dorff, Abdallah El Akal, Ali Suliman
Running Time: 110 minutes
Certificate: 15
Extras: Trailer and Making of Documentary
Kids and cinema can make for uncomfortably saccharine viewing – we’re thinking about you John Connor – and actually TERMINATOR 2: JUDGMENT DAY (1991) isn’t a bad comparison to bring to Israeli-UK release ZAYTOUN (2012). In the same way that annoyingly cutesy Edward Furlong opens up the softer, more human side of the Terminator (complete with cringe-worthy one-liners) so too does ZAYTOUN (from the producer of THE KING’S SPEECH) pair together an odd couple whose journey to the Palestinian homeland sees them getting into all sorts of scrapes while changing each other in a profound way.
When Israeli air force pilot Yoni (Stephen Dorff) is shot down over Beirut in 1982 and captured by the PLO, 12 year old Palestinian street kid Fahed (Abdallah El Akal) is given the task of guarding him. It’s initially a hostile relationship until – well, you know the rest. Sure enough captor and captive bond over Fahed’s olive tree (‘Zaytoun’ in Arabic) and the boy’s emotively simple wish; to visit the homeland and plant this shrub in Palestinian soil. Soon Yoni and Fahed strike a deal to help each other, one getting his freedom and the other to fulfil his dream, and they set out together for the border on a mismatched road-trip.
Riklas showcases his talent in quick thriller-esque direction with some tense moments for the pair as they dodge border patrols, Lebanese police, guerilla fighters and shooters, while both Dorff and El Akal give solid performances and have enough chemistry to pull it off, although Dorff’s accent is a tad worrying at times. But once we move into Palestine their relationship feels a trifle forced and the big messages of the film start to push through perhaps a little too much – can such vast cultural divides really be crossed by adopting an innocent, child-like view, or is an end to conflict as easy as extending a hand in friendship? But when the settings are this breathtaking and the theme so optimistic it’s hard to stay totally cynical.
Despite some touches of cloying sentimentality, ZAYTOUN will manage to capture most audiences with its central theme and ‘father-son’ relationship. However those closer to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict may question its over-simplistic, yet hopeful message.
Extras: Theatrical trailer and a Making of Documentary; the latter provides some interesting contextualisation that will engage any movie-lover.
ZAYTOUN is out on DVD and Blu-ray April 8
