A West Bank Story.
Israel, 1981. Recently widowed mother-of-two Rachael (Michaela Eshet)
applies for a position on the founding committee of a new settlement
on the West Bank. Meanwhile, her eldest daughter has embarked on an
ill-fated relationship with an army conscript while the younger is
beginning to come to terms with her own sexuality.
Given the setting and the above synopsis, one could be forgiven for
thinking that American-born Joseph Cedar's Campfire would be a rather
po-faced, worthy affair. However, any fears in that department are
quickly put to rest with the opening narration from the younger
daughter, Tami (Hani Furstenberg), who assures us that this year she
means to 'Be happy, no matter what.' It's ironic then that the sweet
and appealing Tami gets the roughest deal of the three as the film
progresses towards the titular campfire.
Cedar's cast of characters is uniformly likeable, with strong
performances all around and a fine sense of time and place, hideous
eighties fashions included. Having said that, the framing device of
Tami's narration suggests a coming-of-age tale that never really
materialises. Cedar himself seems to like his characters too much to
allow anything really dramatic to happen to them and, although there
are some standout scenes (especially between Rachael and would-be
suitor Yossi - a fine, bittersweet performance by Moshe Ivgy) they
don't really build to an emotionally satisfying climax.
The setting, too, has a vague air of novelty about it. The politics of
Rachael's decision to move her family to a new settlement are never
explored, apart from her remark that she 'believes in the cause',
although it's never made clear if even this remark is truthful or an
attempt to sway to male-ccentric settlement committee to allow her to
join. Campfire could really be set anywhere, at anytime, in the last
thirty years and perhaps that's the point. Certainly Rachael is a
strong-minded woman in a society where such things are frowned upon
but even this is not examined with much depth. Possibly Cedar, mindful
of the slew of films on the Middle-East conflict, chose to steer clear
of the era's politics but a little more context would have benefited
the film greatly.
All of which is not to say that Campfire isn't worth your time. The
excellent performances alone are enough to recommend the film, just
don't expect anything particularly original or enlightening.