Innocence
Guy Davidi / , , & / 2022
When does propaganda become truth? And who pays the price? An Oscar-nominated director's film deconstructs the patriotic myths that protect mandatory conscription into the Israeli army, and pays tribute to those whose young lives ended along the way.
There are three years of compulsory military service for men and just under two years for women in the Israeli army. Everyone has to wear the uniform, so it is vital that both young people and their families can see the point of the hard training – and not everyone can. ‘Innocence’ is dedicated to the young people who never returned from the physically and mentally gruelling life in the barracks. Former Oscar-nominated filmmaker Guy Davidi (‘5 Broken Cameras’) has created a film that is at once a poignant and poetic tribute to the young lives that ended too soon, and a razor-sharp analysis of the many faces of propaganda. From recruitment videos to the patriotic stories families tell each other over the dinner table.