This Israeli documentary about the plight of young Palestinian men trying to cope by having to find menial work in an Israeli market is, I suppose, well meant. But it also displays that curiously gentle and evasive tone that supposedly sympathetic Israelis seem to possess. While sympathising with the Palestinian youths there is never any criticism of the Israeli government policy dictating their plight.
I appreciate the glimpse into this sordid world. The young men affect a jauntiness, which is the right of all young people, but there is a long silent moment when we see in the eyes and visage of the main protagonist his deep and utter despair. It is the still centre of the entire documentary.
The Israeli employer of this young man is decent enough in his way. He pretends a father/son relation. He feels for him. He has wife trouble and apparently no children and this young man means something to him. When the authorities make it impossible for the Palestinian to work in Israel, the employer shows human sympathy. But not once does he criticise his government. Instead the usual blurring of the truth by wishing for peace without acknowledging that Israel holds 95% of the power to make it. This wilful act of innocence.
