Ram Loewy works mostly for Israeli television, so his works aren't much seen even in the tiny niche that Israeli films occupy internationally. To the extent that they are shown outside Israel, it may be largely because of their political message, which tends to be harshly against the Israeli establishment.
The Dead of Jaffa is an exception in that it is intended for theatrical showing. It certainly deserves a spot on the big screen; there is some very nice photography. The message is still anti-establishment, but it explicitly targets imperialism as represented by the British in 20th-century Palestine; it's up to the viewer to decide how that criticism may be projected onto the present.
What is obvious in the script is that everyone is manipulated by their past-- by those who came before them, living or dead, and by their own commitments. The one who seems most independent is the wife of the protagonist, and it's made clear that the reason she can seize the freedom to do what she wants is that she's not quite right in the head.
A major subplot concerns the filming of a movie, and the director of the movie-within-a-movie makes the point that on screen you don't have to act, you just have to be yourself. Accordingly, nobody in The Dead of Jaffa is chewing the scenery-- and it's just as well, because there are some child actors and their modest abilities work perfectly well with the relatively toned-down acting of the professionals. There is a rebellious youngster, but visually he looks more uncooperative than wildly rebellious. There is a glamorous movie star, but visually she looks more, let us say, attractive than wildly glamorous. The understated style helps draw the viewer into the movie, and the movie repays the effort of attention.
Ram Loewy has been a filmmaker for 50 years, he hasn't been wasting his time, and the fruits of his experience are apparent. Maybe with this theatrical release, and with the new digital avenues for reaching the international public, he will now receive a wider international audience.
