God's Sandbox (2004)
"Tahara" (original title)

A successful author, Liz, searches for her daughter, Rachel, in the Sinai Desert. There she meets a Bedouin storyteller who relays the unusual love story of a Western tourist and the son of a Bedouin Sheik named Najim. Their relationship is torn apart when the American is exposed to a tribal ritual.

Director:

Doron Eran

Writers:

Hanita Halevy, Yoav Halevy

Stars:

Meital Dohan, Ashraf Farah, Amnon Fisher

5 nominations.

Cast

Credited cast:
Meital Dohan	...	Layla
Ashraf Farah	...	Michael
Amnon Fisher
Razia Israeli	...	Liz
Amos Lavi	...	Bedouin Sorcerer
Juliano Mer-Khamis	...	Nagim (as Juliano Mer)
Orli Perl	...	Rachel
Sami Samir	...	Mustafa

Storyline

A successful author, Liz, searches for her daughter, Rachel, in the Sinai Desert. Although her daughter objects, Liz remains at the beach and meets a Bedouin storyteller, who relays the unusual love story of Leila -- a Western tourist -- and the son of a Bedouin Sheik named Najim. Their relationship is torn apart when Leila is exposed to a female circumcision ceremony.

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Plot Keywords:

based on novel

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Genres:

Drama

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Details

Country:

Israel

Language:

English Arabic Hebrew

Release Date:

28 October 2005 (USA)

Also Known As:

God's Sandbox

Filming Locations:

Nitzanim Beach, Ashkelon, Israel

Box Office

Opening Weekend:

$4,816 (USA) (29 July 2005)

Gross:

$50,883 (USA) (17 February 2006)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Open Doors Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

86 min 86 min

Color:

Color

User Reviews

Pretty Tough To Take

I saw this at the Israeli film festival in New York City during the summer of 2003.

BE ADVISED: this movie is about female circumcision and it is horrifying.

It takes place in the Middle East, amongst some Bedouins and a naive young lady falls in with a culture for which she just isn't prepared.

I will leave it at that, but I will say that I have a strong stomach yet I still had to go to the lobby for one scene (I came back.) This scene (and another) overwhelms the movie which is too bad because there is some pretty scenery, a nice 60s feel, and one or two decent love scenes (very explicit.) The movie is nice and short but, unfortunately, the filmmakers had a point to make and you are left with nothing afterward except a sick feeling in your stomach and you'll cringe when you think about it for the few days afterward.

You've been warned !!