Dina and Tewfiq get to know one another.
Sony Pictures Classics - rated PG-13
Fish Way Out of Water
A sweet Israeli film reminds us that culture is whereever we find it.
THE BAND'S VISIT, directed by Eran Kolirin
by Steve Taylor
I've always liked so-called "fish out of water" films, and one of my favorites is the 1966 comedy "The Russians Are Coming, the Russians Are Coming." The plot was classic Cold War fare – a Soviet sub runs aground on a New England island, the natives freak out, and then cross-cultural friendships are forged.
The new Israeli film THE BAND'S VISIT is very much reminiscent of that earlier picture. The fish out of water in this case are the members of the Alexandria Ceremonial Police Orchestra, eight Egyptian policemen who play traditional Arab music. They arrive by bus in a desert town in Israel expecting to perform at the opening of a new Arab Cultural Center. They've been invited, but the fact that they were not met as planned at the airport, coupled with the undeniable political complication of being Egyptians in Israel, has made them unsure of their welcome.
About the only sign of life in this town is Dina, the sexy proprietor of a local café, played by Ronit Elkabetz, who starred in the excellent 2001 Israeli film "Late Marriage." Dina squints at these men in their powder-blue uniforms, listens to their halting requests for directions to the cultural center, and announces flatly that this town has "No Israeli culture. No Arab culture. No culture at all." They've come to the wrong place, and for the next 24 hours they'll have to rely on the kindness of strangers.
As the film began, I was fearful that it might be too cute for its own good. Director Eran Kolirin repeatedly uses the sight gag of the band members forlornly dragging their luggage and instrument cases back and forth along airport corridors and dusty sidewalks. Kolirin also populates his film with a number of recognizable types. The band's leader and conductor, Tewfiq, is one of those unyielding, self-important characters who seem destined by the clichés of the genre to end up with a lampshade on his head. Khaled, the handsome trumpet player, loves Chet Baker, and has no regard for Tewfiq's authority. Khaled is the designated flirter of the group, dispatched to ask directions and favors. Simon is the loyal second in command who longs to have his own chance to conduct but is too polite to demand it. Then there's the husky-voiced Dina. She's the classic femme fatale, but with the added vulnerability of knowing herself to be trapped in a small town. She moves with the languor of a bored lioness. Watching her, and watching the large cast of men watch her, is one of this sweet movie's many pleasures.
Furthermore, as cheerfully contrived as this whole situation is, it turns out that filmmaker Kolirin is more bound by realism than by narrative conventions in his storytelling, lending a winning wistfulness to all the outcomes. Tewfiq's story in particular is more cautiously optimistic than transformative, as we get a peek at the inner sadness that informs his way of being, while his character is allowed to maintain the dignity he holds so dear. What is revealed about the intersection of two adversarial cultures is that the surest way for people to understand one another better is for them to work together to solve a problem.
Steve Taylor is a member of the Southeastern Film Critics Association. He lives in downtown Wilmington.
