Lebanon (2009)

During the First Lebanon War in 1982, a lone tank and a paratroopers platoon are dispatched to search a hostile town.

Director:

Samuel Maoz

Writer:

Samuel Maoz

Stars:

Yoav Donat, Itay Tiran, Oshri Cohen

17 wins & 15 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Yoav Donat	...	Shmulik
Itay Tiran	...	Assi
Oshri Cohen	...	Hertzel
Michael Moshonov	...	Yigal
Zohar Shtrauss	...	Gamil (as Zohar Strauss)
Dudu Tassa	...	Syrian Captive
Ashraf Barhom	...	1st Phalangist (as Ashraf Barhum)
Fares Hananya	...	2nd Phalangist
Reymonde Amsallem	...	Lebanese Mother (as Reymonde Amsellem)
Byan Anteer	...	Lebanese Father (as Bian Antir)
Aisha	...	Lebanese child
Fatima	...	Lebanese child (as Fatma)
Khaled Salam	...	Lebanese Boy (as Khaled Salama)
Iad Abu Nama	...	BMW Driver
Hussein Mahagna	...	Truck Driver

Storyline

June, 1982 - The First Lebanon War. A lone tank and a infantry platoon are dispatched to search a hostile town - a simple mission that turns into a nightmare. The four members of a tank crew find themselves in a violent situation that they cannot handle. Motivated by fear and the basic instinct of survival, they desperately try not to lose themselves in the most emblematic act of uncivilized problem solving: war.

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Plot Keywords:

tank | lebanon war | tank crew | country in title | torture | 

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Genres:

Drama | War

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for disturbing bloody war violence, language including sexual references, and some nudity

Details

Official Sites:

CTV International [France] Official site

Country:

Israel France Germany UK

Language:

Hebrew Arabic French English

Release Date:

15 October 2009 (Israel)

Also Known As:

Lebanon

Filming Locations:

Israel

Box Office

Opening Weekend USA:

$17,145, 8 August 2010, Limited Release

Gross USA:

$367,798, 19 December 2010

Company Credits

Production Co:

Ariel Films, Arsam International, Arte France

Technical Specs

Runtime:

93 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The phosphor that is frequently referred to in the film is actually napalm.

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Goofs

The number plate on the brown Mercedes, although similar to Lebanese number plates in the 80s, has the Arabic number back to front. 72194 in English and 49127 in Arabic.

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Connections

Featured in The Rotten Tomatoes Show: The A-Team/The Karate Kid/Winter's Bone (2010)

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Soundtracks

Ana el Qwerka
Music by Mustapha Skandrani and lyrics by Mustapha Kechekoui
Performed by Sami Badra, with Vitali Podolski (accordion), Sanya Kroytor (violin) and Yisrael Bright (piano)

User Reviews

Does Not Live Up to the Hype

It's only so so. As mentioned before, there is no character development, the dialogue and plot is unrealistic, the movie plods, and builds to no climax or resolution. Yes, war is hell, and some people are unprepared for the human face of killing. it's all been done before. And the novelty of he entire film taking place in the tank gets old after the first 20 min. It's just not a very good movie on any terms. It starts with a lot of potential, and then goes nowhere; you never care about the characters, so you never care what happens to them. It's fine for a foreign rental, but best war movie ever? Hardly. Might want to watch Glory or Black Hawk Down again...