Gett: The Trial of Viviane Amsalem (2014)

After a lukewarm marriage of over twenty years, a woman appeals to her husband's compassion to obtain the desirable divorce document in front of a court, which proves to be more challenging than she would expect.

Directors:

Ronit Elkabetz, Shlomi Elkabetz

Writers:

Ronit Elkabetz, Shlomi Elkabetz

Stars:

Ronit Elkabetz, Simon Abkarian, Gabi Amrani

Nominated for 1 Golden Globe. Another 15 wins & 18 nominations.

Cast

Credited cast:
Ronit Elkabetz	...	Viviane Amsalem
Simon Abkarian	...	Elisha Amsalem
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Gabi Amrani	...	Haim
Dalia Beger	...	Donna Aboukassis
Shmil Ben Ari	...	Ya'akov Ben Harouch
Abraham Celektar	...	Shmuel Azoulay
Rami Danon	...	Rabbi Danino
Sasson Gabai	...	Rabbi Shimon
Eli Gorenstein	...	Head Rabbi Salmion (as Eli Gornstein)
Evelin Hagoel	...	Evelyn Ben Chouchan
Albert Iluz	...	Meir
Keren Mor	...	Galia
Menashe Noy	...	Carmel Ben Tovim
David Ohayon	...	David
Roberto Pollack	...	Rabbi Abraham (as Roberto Pollak)

Storyline

In Israel there is neither civil marriage nor civil divorce. Only rabbis can legitimize a marriage or its dissolution. But this dissolution is only possible with full consent from the husband, who in the end has more power than the judges. Viviane Amsalem has been applying for divorce for three years. But her husband Elisha will not agree. His cold intransigence, Viviane's determination to fight for her freedom, and the ambiguous role of the judges shape a procedure in which tragedy vies with absurdity, and everything is brought out for judgment, apart from the initial request.

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Plot Keywords:

divorce | judge | hairdresser | israel | divorce decision | 

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Genres:

Drama

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Details

Country:

Israel France Germany

Language:

Hebrew French Arabic

Release Date:

25 June 2014 (France)

Also Known As:

The Trial

Filming Locations:

Israel

Box Office

Opening Weekend USA:

$22,916, 20 February 2015

Gross USA:

$987,830

Company Credits

Production Co:

Arte France Cinéma, Canal+ France, DBG / deux beaux garçons

Technical Specs

Runtime:

115 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital (Dolby 5.1) Dolby Digital (Spanish dubbing mix)

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Official submission of Israel to the best foreign language film category of the 87th Academy Awards 2015.

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Goofs

Vivian wears only one big ring on her forth finger of her left hand throughout most of the movie. Somewhere in the middle of the movie, Vivian is shown sitting at the bench in the "court" and there is also a second ring on her second finger.

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Quotes

Viviane Amsalem: Why are you making me run around in circles? Why, Your Honor? Why? Why have I come in and out for years now and nothing's changed? Why? You can't force him to divorce nor to appear, and you can't this or that, and what about me? When will you see me? When I'm too exhausted to stand before you? When? If it were up to you, it could go on for 10 years. I could drop dead in front of you and all you'd see was him! But nobody is above the law. There's a God and there's justice and He'll judge you as ...

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Connections

Referenced in Matzav Ha'Uma: Episode #8.10 (2014)

User Reviews

An unusual balance

The Israeli system of divorce is out of whack, a lot of Israeli women are "anchored" (as the Hebrew language puts it) in marriages they don't want, and a lot of people are angry, so as a male Israeli I'm pleased that this divorce drama doesn't turn the husband into a sneering villain to symbolize the balefulness of the system. Instead the husband is a woebegone sort of Bartleby who is emotionally unable to say "yes" to a divorce and he seems very alone. A parade of witnesses are played flamboyantly by top Israeli character actors, and the husband's isolation is emphasized by the fact that the actor playing him is a foreigner little known in Israel. (In fact, and unrealistically, the dialogue tends to lapse into French and after an initial protest the judges tend to tolerate the departure.) So while the movie certainly presents the woman as the aggrieved party-- she was married too young, and to a man whose expectations of religious observance she couldn't bring herself to meet-- the balance is not against an evil or deeply vindictive husband but against a bruised and defensive one, and it works well.