Reviews

Since the advent of literature, people of all nationalities have been fascinated and easily touched by accounts of unhappy love. Even more fascinating have always been the tales of impossible love, love that cannot be. The Israeli filmmaker Eytan Fox' latest film „The Bubble" is about that. And then it is also not. The title of the film refers to the „bubble" that is Tel-Aviv set against the background of the political realities of Israel. The country's cosmopolitan and unofficial capital city doesn't have much in common with Nablus, a city in the Palestinian West Bank which also features in the film. It doesn't have much in common with the tense and hateful atmosphere at the Palestinian checkpoints. Actually, it doesn't seem to have much in common with anything surrounding it. The „bubble" of Tel-Aviv allows people to have a lifestyle which isn't much different from what you may expect in any Western city. Teenage girls looking for Britney Spears' records, a lifestyle magazine editor looking for a sexy cover for his next issue, trendy people sitting in trendy cafes discussing trendy things over cups of cappuccino and other similarly trendy drinks, while those at home are watching the local edition of Pop Idol. It is this „bubble" that also has the potential to lull one's mind into a false sense of reality.

The film evolves around the lives of three young Israelis who share a flat and, for the most part, try to stay out of politics. Yelli, the camp owner and manager of „Orna & Ella", a hip cafe, rarely leaves the city and prefers not to think about the „crap that surrounds them". Noam, a soft and easygoing employee of a slightly avantguard record store, seems to be equally unwilling to engage in long political discussions and contemplations. Lulu, the only female of the lot, is on the contrary linked to the Israeli Left, although her political activities seem to be confined to „raves against the occupation". Yelli and Noam naturally don't object to participating in these. Lulu and her political friends make t-shirts with the rave's logo, put up posters and hand out booklets advertising it in the neighbourhood. Their main concern seems to be that there are never any actual Palestinians participating and that the police might come and spoil all the fun for them again. The closest they come to an actual confrontation is when they get into a scuffle with some not so Palestinian-friendly locals who try to prevent them from handing out the leaflets. In other words, predictable products of the „bubble".

The opening scenes of the film take us to a checkpoint on a road to Nablus where we also find Noam doing his reserve duty. A group of Palestinians is being thoroughly checked before entering Israel, among them a pregnant woman who suddenly goes into labour and gives birth to a stillborn child despite the best efforts from Noam and the doctor who eventually arrives in an ambulance. The woman is comforted by a young man who later turns up on Noam's doorstep in Tel-Aviv with his ID which the latter obviously dropped during the ordeal on the border. His name is Ashraf, he's Palestinian and he's gay. And he hasn't just come to hand back the ID, he has come to see Noam. Without a permit to live in Israel and despite the initial hesitation from Noam's flatmates he stays. He soon gets a Jewish name and a job at Yelli's cafe. Having grown up in Jerusalem with Hebrew, he doesn't have an Arabic accent which makes it possible for him and his newly found friends to conceal his identity. The sky is light blue and the air is sweet. But it cannot last. For he has become part of an equation which was never meant to be.

At one point, Noam and Ashraf watch a play called Bent about two prisoners in a Nazi concentration camp who have a love relationship which can never become physical or visible to the surrounding guards. They find a way of being together on another level, a metaphysical one, a level where no one else has access. This is also where our couple arrives in the end. And it couldn't have been much different for them, not in today's Israel.

„The Bubble" is a political statement about the bubble that bursts when confronted with the political realities of today's Israel set against the background of a beautiful and awkward love story involving an Israeli and a Palestinian, the impossible love story in a divided world where no such things as compromise or other colours than black and white exist. „The Bubble" is also a beautiful film about people, gay and straight, inhabiting that strange city, Tel-Aviv, shown through the eyes of people who really care about them. The film's premise may have its flaws and the fatal chain of events may seem somewhat construed, but its strong message and emotional impact will not leave you untouched.

Keillers Park is a Swedish film made in 2006 which is loosely based on the story surrounding the tragic death of a 37 year old man in the aforementioned park in the middle of Gothenburg in 1997. His death was a homophobic killing, and although the victim's boyfriend was accused of his murder initially, the real perpetrators were later found and convicted.

What might have been another hate crime story actually turned out to be a film about the belated sexual awakening and coming out of Peter, a 30 something Swedish civil engineer of Latvian origin (yes, isn't that an interesting twist to the story?) who finds his entire existence turned upside down after a chance encounter with Nassim, a gay free spirit born in Algeria, longing to open a "tabac" in Paris, but stuck in the cold climate of Sweden. Giving in to his desire, Peter soon loses the perfect Swedish middle class life he has been leading hitherto - his girlfriend understandably enough walks out on him, his stock conservative father disowns him and throws him out of the family business he was soon to inherit. His former friends want nothing to do with him anymore and he finds it difficult to adjust to the new ones that come with the new territory. However, the personal happiness that seems to have come with the changes in his life still makes up for the losses. Or so he thinks. After a quarrel, Nassim is gone for several days and when he calls in the dead of the night asking for his bag, Peter discovers a plane ticket to Paris in Nassim's name. Shortly thereafter, the police storm Peter's flat, take him into custody and charge him with Nassim's murder.

The story of the two men's relationship is revealed through Peter's interrogation by the police using flashbacks and is never boring, albeit painful to watch at times. The storytelling is strong and somewhat convincing, but I must say, only somewhat. I believe that it's possible to keep such an essential part of one's personality as sexuality at bay for many years, then something triggers one's true essence to come forth and lo and behold - here he is - sharing his bed with another man. I must admit that it sounds slightly out of this world, but yeah, what the hell, I can believe such premise - people are, after all, strange and often inexplicable beings. What I did find a lot less convincing was the apparent ease with which the change came. It may be down to the cliché non-expressive facade of the Nordic people, but it just seemed like Peter really didn't find it particularly hard to, in all essence, lose the ground he had been standing on. Also the culture clash between the orderly mind of a Swedish engineer and that of a free North African spirit was to be expected but I found the way in which it was shown rather perplexing. Nassim simply explodes one night because he's had enough of Peter. The build-up to the scene is simply not sufficient to make me believe such a sudden outburst, especially Peter's reaction. It is instrumental to the plot but it certainly does nothing to present the characters in a more realistic fashion.

Another flaw with the story is that Peter's surroundings in Sweden of our day and age all seem to be so homophobic and prejudiced, especially taking into account that the story takes place in Gothenburg, Sweden's second largest city. The police interrogating Peter make homophobic remarks, his former friends are horrified that he's gay and his father completely abandons him. Although even in Sweden all of this could have happened, the totality of it all doesn't feel all too real. Actually, I could see this film set in Latvia to a higher degree than in Gothenburg, hence the irony of the main character being of Latvian origin. In a way, one could say that this is the first film ever made about a gay Latvian and in that respect the tragedy of it all only seems appropriate. Or not.

Susanna Edwards' first attempt at a full length feature film comes across as solid. The acting is mostly good and the camera work deserves a big compliment. Despite some flaws, Keillers Park is certainly worth watching. It's a murder thriller and it's a love story. With a Swedish noir feeling about it.