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1980s – today

Israeli and Palestinian Cinema

Filmmakers of Israel and Palestine, from the war films and documentaries of the 1980s to the satires, dramas and animations that have made their way to Cannes, Berlin and the Academy Awards.

Film from Israel and Palestine is closely tied to the conflict and to questions of memory and identity. In the 1980s and 90s directors such as Amos Gitai made political films, and in the 2000s a new wave of Israeli filmmakers, including Ari Folman, Joseph Cedar and Samuel Maoz, turned to the army, the wars and personal trauma, with Folman's animated Waltz with Bashir (2008) a landmark. Palestinian directors such as Elia Suleiman and Hany Abu-Assad created films of deadpan humour and urgent drama, often made with great difficulty under occupation and travel limits. Nadav Lapid carries on a sharp, restless Israeli critique.

Where
Israel and the Palestinian territories
When
1980s to the present
Key figures
Amos Gitai, Elia Suleiman, Ari Folman, Joseph Cedar, Hany Abu-Assad, Nadav Lapid, Samuel Maoz
Landmark films
Divine Intervention (2002), Paradise Now (2005), Waltz with Bashir (2008), Lebanon (2009)
Legacy
Gave world cinema some of its most direct films about war, memory and identity

What to look for

  • War, military service and occupation as central subjects
  • Personal trauma and memory; mixing of animation and documentary
  • Dark humour and deadpan comedy in the Palestinian tradition

Famous Directors

Amos GitaiIsraelElia SuleimanPalestineAri FolmanIsraelJoseph CedarIsraelHany Abu-AssadPalestineNadav LapidIsraelSamuel MaozIsrael

Top films · 31 films

  1. Waltz with Bashir 2008 · Ari Folman · IMDb 8.0
  2. Omar 2013 · Hany Abu-Assad · IMDb 7.5
  3. Paradise Now 2005 · Hany Abu-Assad · IMDb 7.4
  4. Ford Transit 2002 · Hany Abu-Assad · IMDb 7.4
  5. Foxtrot 2017 · Samuel Maoz · IMDb 7.2
  6. The Time That Remains 2009 · Elia Suleiman · IMDb 7.1
  7. Field Diary 1982 · Amos Gitai · IMDb 7.1
  8. Footnote 2011 · Joseph Cedar · IMDb 7.1
  9. Chronicle of a Disappearance 1996 · Elia Suleiman · IMDb 7.0
  10. Campfire 2004 · Joseph Cedar · IMDb 7.0
  11. Lebanon 2009 · Samuel Maoz · IMDb 6.9
  12. It Must Be Heaven 2019 · Elia Suleiman · IMDb 6.9
  13. Saint Clara 1996 · Ari Folman · IMDb 6.9
  14. Kadosh 1999 · Amos Gitai · IMDb 6.8
  15. Beaufort 2007 · Joseph Cedar · IMDb 6.7
  16. Time of Favor 2000 · Joseph Cedar · IMDb 6.7
  17. The Kindergarten Teacher 2014 · Nadav Lapid · IMDb 6.6
  18. Divine Intervention 2002 · Elia Suleiman · IMDb 6.6
  19. House 1980 · Amos Gitai · IMDb 6.6
  20. Rana's Wedding 2002 · Hany Abu-Assad · IMDb 6.5
  21. Made in Israel 2001 · Ari Folman · IMDb 6.4
  22. The Congress 2013 · Ari Folman · IMDb 6.4
  23. Where Is Anne Frank 2021 · Ari Folman · IMDb 6.4
  24. Synonyms 2019 · Nadav Lapid · IMDb 6.3
  25. Policeman 2011 · Nadav Lapid · IMDb 6.3
  26. Ahed's Knee 2021 · Nadav Lapid · IMDb 6.3
  27. Kippur 2000 · Amos Gitai · IMDb 6.3
  28. Norman 2016 · Joseph Cedar · IMDb 6.1
  29. Ana Arabia 2013 · Amos Gitai · IMDb 5.9
  30. Free Zone 2005 · Amos Gitai · IMDb 5.7
  31. The Last Day of Yitzhak Rabin 2015 · Amos Gitai