Thursday, October 28, 2010
AGITPROP
Today's film was the Israeli documentary
directed by Yoav Shamir, an Israeli who became interested in the issue of contemporary anti- and anti-anti semitism.
In a serious but light hearted manner, he explores the various sides of the issue.
On one side we have the anti-defamation bureaucracy in the form of the Jewisn Anti Defamation League.
On the other Norman Finkelstein and others who have written about the use of anti-semitism as a propaganda device for Israel.
They point out how there is a difference between world Jewry and the Israeli state. Others fail to see the difference and conflate the two.
I am interested in all this and, to his credit, Shamir give voice to both sides.
I have actually felt as though I might be anti-semitic for hating what the Israeli state is doing to Palestinians and to the Middle East in general. Well, not really. I know that I am not anti-semitic.
It is interesting that the Israeli establishment uses the issue of self hatred against their Jewish critics. This defuses the rational argument and, ironically, uses a kind of anti-semitic attitude to picture the other as less-than.
And so on.
The film is not all serious. It is filled with wry humor and the documentarian does, actually, introspect with us as he films.
A good clue as to where Shamir comes out is that he is, eventually, accused of self hatred. Bong! And this film has been wildly deplored and vindictively lobbied against by the ADL.
I enjoyed the film and, since it reinforced my own prejudices and beliefs found it reaffirming.
I will give it a 3 out of Netflix5.
Labels: films
