The 1970s
Israeli society experienced significant political and social processes during the 1970s, including the 1973 Yom Kippur war and the ‘turnover’ 1977 elections that changed the political map.[1] In this decade, social-political cinema produced some insightful works about the diminishing status of the militaristic, heroic image of the Israeli Sabra[2] and the collective Israeliness, such as Avram Hefner’s But where is Daniel Wax? (1972), Uri Zohar’s Peeping Tom (1972), Dan Wolman’s My Michael (1975), and Yaki Yosha’s Rockinghorse (1978). These New Sensitivity directors, and others such as Moshe Mizrahi and Michal Bat-Adam, were occupied with their personal lived experiences, while challenging, or rather ignoring, the collective, national narratives.
The 1970s brought with them some of the most popular Bourekas[3] films, among them Charlie and a half (Boaz Davidson, 1974), Snooker (Zeev Revah, 1975), and Tzanani family (Boaz Davidson, 1976), as well as the momentous musical Kazablan (Menahem Golan, 1973) – a filmic version of a 1966 theater musical by same title and the second most viewed Israeli film of all times until this day.[4] Similarly to Sallah Shabati (Ephraim Kishon, 1964), these melodramatic comedies and musicals positioned various demographic groups one against the other, usually wealthy Ashkenazi as opposed to poor Mizrahi, while also caricaturing their protagonists and their ethnic characteristics. They all culminate in happy-endings, unifying the various groups into ‘one big Jewish family.’
One of the most famous Bourekas films, that also became a beloved and one of the most cited cult movies in Israel, is Hill Halfon doesn't answer (Assi Dayan, 1976). With a clear juxtaposition to Dickinson’s patriotic Hill 24 Doesn't Answer (1955), Dayan’s anarchist parody is set in the middle of nowhere, near the border with Egypt, on an unnamed hill. It mocks the idealization of the Israeli soldier’s heroic image, shows the pointless bureaucracy of military Reserves operations, and clearly asserts that it is not worthwhile to give your life for your country in a war over an unnamed hill.
As a reaction to Bourekas crowd pleasers, some directors created neo-realistic films that tried to bring to the surface real-life social inequalities and injustice. Nissim Dayan’s Light out of nowhere (1973) presented the unpleasant reality of Mizrahi slums in Tel Aviv, an unusual cinematic document for its time. The wooden gun (Ilan Moshenson, 1979) was the first film that criticized the Israeli society’s treatment of Holocaust survivors, showing their difficulties to conform to the Sabra, ‘new brave Jew’ narrative.
[1] The Likud party won the 1977 elections, establishing the first right-wing administration in Israel, led by Menahem Begin’s government.
[2] Sabra is a Jewish person born in Israel, either before or after 1948. The term alludes to Tsabar (prickly pear) – “a tenacious, thorny desert plant, with a thick skin that conceals a sweet, softer interior. The cactus is compared to Israeli Jews, who are supposedly tough on the outside, but delicate and sweet on the inside.” https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sabra_(person)
[3] A unique Israeli film genre that is based on ethnic stereotypes while combining melodramatic and comedic scenes. See also the 1960s section and footnote 5.
[4] First in line is Lemon Popsicle (Davidson, 1978), and third is Sallah Shabati (Kishon, 1964). See https://tinyurl.com/2988ybfc[Hebrew].