My So-Called Enemy

"My So-Called Enemy" chronicles the experiences over a period of several years of six remarkable young women from Palestine and Israel, from their participation at a camp in New Jersey (a program called "Building Bridges") to their homes in Israel and the Palestinian territories and beyond. The conflict in that region provides a backdrop for the film, but the primary focus of the film is the transformative and re-humanizing power of compassionate listening and the forging of personal connections between people who are, due to their circumstances, supposed to see each "other" as enemies. The film is not at all a "message" film though, it is remarkably non-ideological and makes no attempt to simplify the complicated or offer easy solutions to the seemingly intractable difficulties faced by the subjects of the film. It is a personal and sometimes painfully intimate portrait of the deep psychological complexities young people encounter when faced with historic social conflict in their personal and public lives. Triumphs of friendship in apparently impossible circumstances, heartbreak and frustration with the terrible costs of conflict, and the gradual coming of age of each of the participants in the film are all addressed beautifully.

The subject matter of this film is, in my estimation, applicable to so many of the conflicts we face in our lives. Whether the issue is immigration, economic class, race, religion, etc, there are numerous touch points in the film that will provide a valuable starting point for important dialogue.

My So-Called Enemy (2010) is a bold documentary directed by U.S. filmmaker Lisa Gossels. In 2002, an organization called Building Bridges for Peace brought a group of teenage girls from Israel and Palestine to the United States to participate in a leadership training program.

Most filmmakers would have completed a documentary about the workshop, which could have made an interesting movie. Gossels didn't do this. She took a far more daring approach by selecting six of the young woman in advance. Then she concentrated her footage during the program on these six teenagers. (I believe two are Christian, two Jewish, and two Muslim.)

Gossels didn't stop there. She followed all six women for the next seven years, as they matured into adulthood. Again that was a daring move, one that could have left her with thousands of hours of footage and no film to show for it.

However, Gossels' gamble was successful. She has completed a documentary that proves to us that the bridges of friendship and respect can endure even the impossible strains put on them by the political, psychological, and physical barriers between Israel and Palestine.

This film was shown at Rochester's Little Theatre as part of the superb Rochester Jewish Film Festival. It will work well on DVD. Bringing the filmmaker to Rochester for a pre- and post-film discussion was a gift to the audience, and a real coup for the RJFF and its director, Lori Harter.

This is a film that needs to be seen everywhere because it provides a "new" narrative that challenges all preconceptions and stereotypes, which have been some of the greatest obstacles to peace. The filmmaker, Lisa Gossels, should be thanked for focusing on the lives of young girls. Too often, the voice of women/girls is ignored and forgotten in media, although they often play some of the most significant roles in bringing about social change. I commend Ms. Gossels for bringing our focus back on to the women in the struggle and their desire to build bridges for peace and reconciliation.

Being a female film producer/director takes courage in and of itself, but having the commitment and insight to present a new narrative as "her story" (v. the traditional "his" story) is radically bold and refreshing!

I just saw this movie at a local film festival. I found myself with tears running down my face at the end.

This is a movie about humanity. And, it's a movie about hope and hopelessness all at once. It's a movie about the irony that exists in all of our lives. And, most importantly, it's about the power of communication, whether or not you ultimately agree.

One of the most amazing things about the film is that it follows the girls for seven years. So, you get to see what the long term effects of the peace camp are for them. The one thing that's missing is some understanding about how these girls found out about the camp. And, if they are hand chosen in any way. But, that is a minor complaint relative to the overall success of the film.

I highly recommend this film to anyone who is interested in the faces and stories buried deep behind the crazy "conflicts" that exist all over the world today, including in the Middle East. Bravo to the film maker!

This moving, real, and guardedly hopeful documentary follows six young women--three Palestinians and three Israelis--during and after a "peace camp" which insists that they listen to each others' deepest feelings about what divides them. They struggle to open each other up, reach out, become friends, and significantly though tenuously bridge the chasm between them even as bombs and rockets explode. These young women, each in her own way, choose futures which may light paths out of an intractable conflict. You will be glad you met them.

Oh, and bring hankies. Even the guys in the audience were crying, and not for sadness.