The long-awaited return of Liat
At last year's Oscars, the award for best documentary went to No other landThe portrait of the destruction of the Palestinian community in Masafer Yatta by the Israeli army. Months after receiving the award, one of the advisors, Activist Odeh Hadalin was murdered Shot by an Israeli settler. This year, one of the documentaries nominated for the same award is Holding Liat (Until Liat returns), which shows the other side of the same conflict. Produced by Darren Aronofsky (Requiem for a Dream, The Black SwanYou can find it on Filmin. The documentary follows the family of Liat Atzili, a history teacher who was kidnapped by Hamas members when they stormed the kibbutz where she lived with her husband.
The Atzili family's connections with two documentary filmmaker friends have allowed them to witness the entire ordeal firsthand. Liat's parents become the protagonists. The story isn't approached from a melodramatic perspective: it's a documentary with such emotional restraint that it even feels strange at times. Holding Liat It's more than that. In a psychologically extreme situation, the documentary stimulates Liat's parents' political reflections on the conflict between Israel and Hamas. "This isn't the future I imagined for my children. When has there ever been a war that ended well? In fact, since Liat is smarter than me, she understood this long before." The documentary shows the disillusionment with the utopian Israel that her father, Yehuda, envisioned during the 1970s and which he has never seen realized.
We've seen many images and official statements on television regarding the negotiations for the release of hostages, the demonstrations by family members, and the staged exchanges with Hamas. The most interesting thing about Holding Liat It brings viewers closer to the hidden side of it all and highlights the division within Israeli society. Liat's father's interviews with US senators become unsettling because of the coldness and theatricality of politics. His unexpected encounter with a Palestinian lawyer can be interpreted, albeit somewhat forcedly, as an effort at cordiality, but it is terribly uncomfortable because of everything it exudes. Body language and tone speak volumes more than anything they actually say to each other. Inevitably, the constraints of fear are hidden, and how that conversation might affect the outcome.
Aside from the family reunion scene and a few breathtaking twists, the final interview with Liat, three months after her release, is invaluable. She calmly recalls a conversation she had with her husband years earlier about the Gaza border. "Today, this border has a much deeper meaning." We are witnessing the protagonist's transformation. As a history professor, her reflections suggest a path she regrets hasn't been explored before.
