"World Cinema: Israel"

My book, "World Cinema: Israel" (originally published in 1996) is available from Amazon on "Kindle", with an in-depth chapter comparing and analyzing internationally acclaimed Israeli films up to 2010.

Want to see some of the best films of recent years? Just scroll down to "best films" to find listings of my recommendations.

amykronish@gmail.com

Sunday, November 1, 2015

Nahum Heiman



Nah'che, directed by Anat Goren, is an exciting documentary film about the legendary Israeli folksong composer, Nahum Heiman (nicknamed Nah'che), winner of the Israel Prize for his contribution to Israeli folk music, a man who composed hundreds of songs, so many of which have become popular with the Israeli public. 

The film opens with Nah'che at the age of 79, moving from his home to a town where they have named the town square in his honor!  The filmmaker makes use of much footage from public homages to Nah'che, and the viewer has the opportunity to see and hear so many of his songs being performed.
 
The film confronts his troubled relationship with his daughter, Si, herself a well-known singer.  Their professions are intertwined, yet so different.  He mainly composes.  She is a talented singer.  His genre is folk.  Hers is rock.  His style is more restrained.  Hers is passionate and strong.  



Nah'che is not a biopic in the regular sense.  Rather, it is a portrait of a man who has great charm, who has composed beautifully touching songs, a film about his joie de vivre.  This documentary film (70 minutes) is available from Maya Weinberg (mayafilmfest@gmail.com). 

Recommended documentaries about Israeli composers and performers that might go nicely with this one in a series on Israeli music (all of these have been previously reviewed on this blog) --

  • Wind, Darkness, Water (directed by Yahaly Gat) about the legendary, Naomi Shemer
  • The Hungarian Cube (directed by Gilad Inbar) about the composer, Andre Hajdu
  • Rita Jahan Foruz (directed by Ayal Goldberg) about the singer, Rita

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