I`ve
been reading a book, given to me by my eccentric but beautiful
friend, called Daniel`s Story, a book she's owned since Grade
Six. While it is classified as a 'children`s novel', the story
itself is still pretty compelling, simply but accurately detailing
the horrors of a Jewish family in Germany during WWII from
the point of view of a young teenager. Under the Domim Tree
works on very much the same level, focussing on the aftermath
of similar atrocities from the point of view of a group of
teenagers. They live in a boarding school of sorts in Israel,
and all in one form or another have lost one or both parents
to concentration camps and other tragic events during the
war. The movie is not a complete masterpiece, but is able
to discuss harsh issues in simple but heartfelt way.
As
the film begins, one of the teenagers is found dead at the
bottom of a lake nearby the boarding school, an apparent victim
of suicide. This act is the most extreme version of the agony
and confusion suffered by many of the inhabitants of this
make-shift community. All of these people have something missing
in their lives, and, 7 or 8 years after the war, it is natural
for many of these kids to feel utterly hopeless. Aviya is
one of the stronger ones, it seems, but she, too, suffers
because of a mother who is in the mental institution and a
father whom she does not know much about. Apparently, her
father has been dead since the war, but only when the movie
gets underway does she get any information (a picture, and
a name behind the picture), but she does not fully understand
all that's been given to her until later on.
Besides
Aviya's own story, there are three major plot threads in the
movie. One involves the two boys who were friends of the suicide
victim. These two boys are probably the most mentally troubled,
as they often act out in strange ways, such as running around
the property in the middle of the night and screaming like
wounded wild animals. The older boy starts taking a shine
to Aviya, but his behaviour is not exactly lovey-dovey. Actually,
I thought he was pretty scary, especially when he glares at
Aviya for long periods of time without saying a word or responding
to her. Obviously, he is fairly distraught that he finds it
very difficult to relate to others very well.
Another
involves a girl who discovers that her father is alive and
back in her home country of Poland. She is naturally both
blissful and very nervous about the planned reunion, and her
friends even make her a new dress to wear back home. Her own
happiness encourages others to ask her for help; one scene
has her come in to her room to discover letters which they
hope she will send with her to Poland, requesting that their
own parents and relatives can be found. I must say that, without
spoiling the events, I was not too surprised at the outcome
of this plotline.
The
last major story involves a new inhabitant of the residence,
who soon becomes the target of dislike when she brings with
her an arrogant and sardonic attitude. Of course, as in all
melodramas, her nasty attitude masks a lot of real pain, and
that is foreshadowed in a shot in the dressing room when Aviya
sees scars over the new girl's back. Her story is the most
interesting, because she apparently was taken away from another
foster home by a couple claiming to be her parents, and who
then repeatedly abused her. The last major scene is in the
courtroom, where the girl must try to prove that she is not
their child.
The
message of this film is that closure, any kind of closure,
is needed for these teenagers to finally get on with their
lives. While all of the kids wish to find parents and relatives
who are alive, in this situation, that is not always likely
to happen. Aviya is able to become at peace with herself when
she finally discovers her father's resting place, because
at least she now knows who she is and what her past is. The
other characters also need to discover comfort within themselves,
either by finding out the truth of who their parents are,
or where they are, or finding comfort with the people who
are around them.
Under
the Domim Tree (1995) is in fact the sequel to the 1988 film
The Summer of Aviya; here, Aviya is about six or seven years
older than in the previous film, and, unlike in the first
film, she is not the entire focus of the story. In terms of
simple content and form, there are many differences: the original
film was essentially a coming-of-age tale, which the subject
of her missing father was only one of a number of events that
occurred in Aviya`s young life. In the second film, the search
for identity and closure is the entire story. In terms of
mood, the first film had a nostalgic and mysterious feel,
as the adult Aviya narrates a story that would have been quite
confusing for a ten year old to understand fully. The movie
suggested many things which Aviya would not have been able
to perceive or understand at the time. The second film, however,
is more of an issues-oriented drama; the events seem more
urgent, less personal. In many ways, this truly is a different
film, and probably could be viewed without having seen the
first film.
There
is only one plot element that carries over to this film, and
that is Aviya's search for her father. The first film was
not very clear on the truth of her father, since much of the
effect was in Aviya's firm belief that the next-door neighbour
was, in fact, her dad. But (spoiler!), the story here makes
it very clear that the father did die, and is buried somewhere
in Israel. The truth, however, seems, for me, to undercut
the apparent facts of the first film, and got me a bit confused
for a minute. Seems as if the mother was never in Europe during
the war, and was in Israel the entire time - so, if I've gotten
this right, she could not have been in the concentration camp
which is what Aviya seems to believe in the first film. In
both films, the mother is in a mental institution for troubles
in her past - troubles which I thought were her experiences
in the concentration camp in the first film, but which now
seem to be because of something else. Here, it seems that
she is crazy because of her pain over the loss of others,
which is much what the teenagers are experiencing.
This
movie should be watched by people interested in wanting to
understand the effects of the most horrible war in history
on the survivors. And while Under The Domim Tree is certainly
not a major masterpiece, and may be too melodramatic for some,
it is still a well-meaning film, with many strong moments.
As well, for anyone interested in searching far and wide for
different examples of world cinema, this and The Summer of
Aviya will give one a rare glimpse of Israeli cinema.
David
Macdonald
David
Macdonald's Movie Reviews
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