Sand Flakes

I don't know whether this story is autobiographical, but it's told with a passion that makes me think that it likely is. The young protagonist is at the age where he should be starting to discover the wide world away from home, but that world is inaccessible. His home is out in the desert and he's too poor for casual trips to the big city. Trapped along with him is his mother, who suffers from multiple sclerosis. It's a disease of the cinematic kind that can turn quite serious when the plot requires but eases off when it would only be in the way. The mother is played by Shani Cohen, who is one of Israel's most popular comic actresses on TV and has been recently stretching her range. The camera gives her plenty of attention and only occasionally catches her at an unbeautiful angle. Also on hand, as her husband, is the talented Ori Pfeffer, whose job is to sit around also looking trapped and unfulfilled. An accomplished actor, a little underused. So anyway, this is all far from a jolly situation. The boy escapes onto the Internet, where he finds appreciation under an assumed name and while pretending to live closer to the big city-- a pretense that he can't keep up forever. He also has a pal his parents' age, whose relationship with the family becomes clear only as the plot develops. If you don't mind a low-key movie, with no car chases and no shootouts, you may find yourself drawn into this one.