Thursday 23 March 2017

Waltz With Bashir | Israel | Film Review


Waltz With Bashir is a film directed by Ari Folman, who also wrote the piece, depicting the creators memories of events that took place when his country was at war with Lebanon, a war in which he served, making this film autobiographical. The film received a release in 2008 and was met with great reviews and high praise, being potentially the first feature film to emerge from its home country, since its release Waltz With Bashir has remained a well loved film which represents an artist telling of extremely personal and intense events.

Fig 1: Movie Poster, Waltz With Bashir

In terms of animation tradition it is fairly difficult to find a film that predates Folman's creation which also shares a similar style, possibly suggesting just why Waltz With Bashir was met with such critical acclaim. Although Folman doesn't necessarily have the largest of filmographies, holding only a few films to his name, it is more than true to say his name will be remembered for this original telling of difficult subjects. As this was essentially the first film of its kind to originate from Israel, it is fair to say that its initial audience were new to this type of film, obviously audiences from this country could have potentially seen animated features from across the globe, the idea of a feature film being born in Israel and depicting issues directly concerned with their country would be completely new to them.

The story itself seems to exist to not only illustrate Folman's memoirs, but to also educate audiences across the globe potentially, depicting events that some parts of world and age brackets may not be familiar with. The story follows events that occurred when Israel were fighting with Lebanon, specifically massacres that Folman was exposed to. As Folman struggles to regain his memories of such events, the audience is taken on his personal journey through these episodes of time and how the creator managed to survive.

Fig 2: Screenshot, Waltz With Bashir

In terms of style, Waltz With Bashir boasts a graphically designed style similar to that seen in many graphic novels that would be recognizable to audiences all over the world. Because of this choice of style, some story telling featured in this piece come off as slightly tongue in cheek, almost sarcastic, making the events appear as extremely real, showing that Folman had no interest in showing a romanticized version of the events he witnessed, possibly being the reason that the film was met with such praise.

Fig 3: Screenshot, Waltz With Bashir

Whether or not Waltz With Bashir is viewed as realistic and educational piece or as an artist memoir with, the film will without a doubt deliver in one way or another, depicting real events in a style that enforces the ideal of realism due to its relativity, a style that definitely paid off in Folman's case.


Illustration List

Fig 1: Movie Poster, Waltz With Bashir, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Waltz_with_Bashir, Accessed on: 23.01.17

Fig 2: Screenshot, Waltz With Bashir, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bL_2tc7uXco, Accessed on: 23.03.17

Fig 3: Screenshot, Waltz With Bashir, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uvh4asRIiz0, Accessed on: 23.03.17 



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