Self Made

Michal is an avant garde artist and something of a celebrity in Israel. She is having a bad day, much of it amnesia-related: her husband unexpectedly flew overseas for a conference, her bed collapsed and the replacement appears faulty, interviewers keep unexpectedly appearing at her house (though they do have an appointment), her bath is filled with crabs. Meanwhile, in another part of town Nadine, a Palestinian woman, has just been fired, indirectly due to something Michal said. For Nadine, every day involves checkpoints, body searches and suspicion. Then their paths cross, and their lives are strangely altered.

Initially reasonably interesting and intriguing. There was a slow- burning tension about the movie which made you think the movie was going to be rather profound. There was no apparent focus though, which was a plus initially as I felt that once all the fragments coalesced, everything would be clear and have a point.

Things do come together, but not in a good way. After much pretentious wanderings and imagery, we have the crucial moment of the movie, when Michael and Nadine's paths cross. What happens after that is incredibly silly and far-fetched.

Clearly writer-director Shira Geffen wanted to make a political point, and her only way to get to her destination was to have an incredibly contrived, implausible plot. And the political point is hardly anything new either...

Not worth your time.