Plot Summary for
Lemon Tree (2008) More at IMDbPro »Etz Limon (original title)

Salma Zidane, a widow, lives simply from her grove of lemon trees in the West Bank's occupied territory. The Israeli defense minister and his wife move next door; the Secret Service orders the trees removed for security. The stoic Salma seeks assistance from the Palestinian Authority (useless), Israeli army (dismissive), and a young attorney, Ziad Daud, who takes the case; this older client attracts him. While the courts deliberate, the Israelis fence her trees and prohibit her from entering the grove. As the trees wither, the defense minister's wife and, separately, an Israeli journalist, look on Salma with sympathy. In this allegory, does David stand a chance against Goliath? Written by <jhailey@hotmail.com>

After the passing of her husband due to a weak heart, Arabic-speaking Salma Zidane, a mother of two married daughters, and a U.S.-based son, Nasser, now lives alone in West Bank's Kalkiya, her only source of income is an ancestral lemon grove. When the newly appointed Defense Minister, Israel Navon, moves next door, the area gets surrounded by Secret Service personnel, security fences, soldiers, and a watch tower. She then receives a letter in Hebrew which notifies her that the lemon trees pose a security threat, must be destroyed and she will be compensated. She then meets with people in the community and with the assistance of Russia-returned lawyer, Ziad Daud, files an appeal in the Military Court. This Court not only dismisses the complaint but also orders that the grove be fenced-in. Aggrieved, she decides to appeal to the Supreme Court, and is distressed when soldiers refuse to even permit her to water the trees, while her neighbor goes to the extent of stealing lemons. Things get even worse when an explosion takes place at her neighbor's residence during a house-warming party. Meanwhile Ziad hopes to convince the Supreme Court that the destruction of the grove not only violates international laws but also Section 53 of the Geneva Convention. But in a country that seems to have no borders, with frequent curfews and where provisions of the Intifidah Act empowers the regime to declare Palestinian-owned properties as hostile territory, confiscate lands and demolish houses to build prisons - with impunity - will she even stand a chance? Written by rAjOo (gunwanti@hotmail.com)

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