Jellyfish

A few posts ago I had watched an Israeli film called "There Was No War in '72" and I commented on its down to earth view and centered perspective, and I thought with this movie, "Jellyfish" I would get along the same lines, and was more than pleasantly surprised.

The story is simple, we follow several women living in Israel, whose lives intersect although briefly at a wedding, and from then on their stories are all fairly separate. They are all searching for something, struggling with life and love, all within a few days span. I was not expecting it to turn as surreal as it did, which wasn't Daliesque surreal, but still very different. There are clues about who or what people really are, and if they really exist in the first place, but nothing is spelled out for you. There is a poem written in the story that I thought was just beautiful, as well as I think Israeli women are very beautiful, and all these women were (except maybe the old lady) beautiful.

The story flows like a river, bending and changing with no real narrative force, but it didn't make a difference, it made it all the better that there wasn't some slave driver moving the story along, it went at its own pace. Usually when people try and co-direct a movie, especially people who are married it doesn't work out well....couldn't have worked better for this. There's just so much I liked/loved about it. I don't have any complaints, it was a truly fantastic movie that should have played here. If there's any complaint I could make right now is that I watch so many foreign or indie movies that should be getting their due credit in the American Cinema system we have here, and they just don't. Transformers 2 everyone has heard of, and a lot have seen (gross) and no ones heard of this movie, its shameful.

It was beautifully shot, great use of lighting, and the art direction and design was awesome. Every shot was composed as they wanted it to be (watch for the posters of a woman making a triangle with her hands, the wall paper, etc.) They use the camera to help tell the story not to simply show whats going on. There is a fantastic Steadicam shot going around the wedding at the beginning of the movie that I loved, as good as the one out of "Goodfellas" when they are going into the night club. There is also a well done POV shot from the eyes of a little girl.

After about 10 minutes in I couldn't stop smiling, anticipating what they were going to do next, I even clapped my hands a few times (scaring the dogs in the process) to show my appreciation for a really well done original film. It does its own thing, and it doesn't try and be anything that its not and for that I have to say I really couldn't get enough and wanted it to be longer. Its a great surrealist movie because it only has hints of it, not stupid and mundane whacked out moments or whole chunks like something out of anything by David Lynch. If you read this, then watch this movie. 9/10 stars easy.

Directors: Shira Geffen, Etgar Keret

Starring: Sarah Adler, Nikol Leidman, Gera Sandler, Noa Knoller, Ma-nenita De Latorre, Zaharira Harifai