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Last update - 22:53 13/09/2009
Israeli director: I may not have won at Venice if Jane Fonda was on jury
By Haaretz Service
Tags: Israel News, Lebanon 

The director of the Israeli war film "Lebanon" has said he may not have won the top prize at the Venice Film Festival on Saturday if the actress Jane Fonda, who has protested against Israeli cinema being spotlighted, had been on the jury.

"The point of a film like mine is to open a dialogue, to get people talking to each other about important issues," Samuel Maoz told the British paper The Observer, in comments published Sunday.

"This is something you can't do if films are boycotted. It makes no sense to boycott art. Maybe I wouldn't have won if Jane Fonda was on the jury, but she wasn't."
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Fonda, 72, is among the signatories of a letter protesting the decision of the Toronto International Film Festival to screen a series of movies about Tel Aviv.

The festival jury announced the Golden Lion and other prizes on the last day of the 11-day international festival.

Maoz's anti-war film recounts Israel's 1982 invasion of its northern neighbor through soldiers' eyes, telling the story of paratroopers searching a hostile town. The conflict is seen through the binocular-aided eyes of soldiers in an armored vehicle.
The director was a young man when he served as a combat soldier in the Israel Defense Forces during the invasion.

The operation led to a two-decade long occupation by Israel.

"I suppose every filmmaker has the naive, even pathetic dream that his film could be the one that finally stops a war," Maoz was further quoted as saying.

"But making this film has got me my life back and that is more precious than any award. Without fully knowing it, I have been deeply traumatized since 1982, as has a whole generation of Israelis, people who are now running the country. Making 'Lebanon' and finally confronting what happened in that war, has given me my true feelings back and I can cry real tears once more."

The weekly entertainment magazine, Variety, has described the film as the boldest and best of the recent mini-wave of Israeli movies; the New York Times called it "an astonishing piece of cinema."

The awards jury was headed by Ang Lee, himself a Golden Lion-winning director.



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  • Israeli film 'Lebanon' wins top prize at Venice Film Festival
  • Horrors of war exposed in new Israeli film 'Lebanon'
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      1.   congratulations, but support the boycott 17:29  |  Tess 13/09/09
      2.   #1 Great idea Tess 18:32  |  H 13/09/09
      3.   maybe it was crap? 18:34  |  Welshman 13/09/09
      4.   Selective indignation 18:38  |  David 13/09/09
      5.   Welshman #4 18:54  |  jono 13/09/09
      6.   Anti-Occupation Film Not Hailed In Israel 19:11  |  chet 13/09/09
      7.   Art and Education should be boycotted 19:29  |  Chris Linthwaite 13/09/09
      8.   #3 H 19:31  |  Chris Linthwaite 13/09/09
      9.   Jane Fonda and Samuel Maoz 20:22  |  L.I. Beerman 13/09/09
      10.   # 1 I fully agree with Tess, congratulations to the Israeli.... 21:06  |  Swiss (Dino) 13/09/09
      11.   Fonda`s Mohawk chop 21:53  |  Glenn Harbison 13/09/09
      12.   Wish I could see it 22:05  |  Steve 13/09/09
      13.   "disputed" territory not occupied as their was never an Arab 22:05  |  ks 13/09/09
      14.   H in London---better stop taking money from the usa 22:22  |  Labhras 13/09/09
      15.   9. L.I. Beerman. 22:34  |  Lynne 13/09/09
      16.   Against US Law to Boycott Israel 22:55  |  James 13/09/09
      17.   To #10 Swiss 22:55  |  Akiva 13/09/09
      18.   When will Muslims countries make these kinds of movies? 23:37  |  Ruben 13/09/09
      19.   On reflection, it seems . . . 23:49  |  Wendy 13/09/09
      20.   Boycott, stand on your head, stomp your feet, hold your breath 00:49  |  Petra 14/09/09
      21.   Strange comment by director 01:18  |  Lexo 14/09/09
      22.   Jane loses 02:03  |  Jasper 14/09/09
      23.   Jane Fonda is a squatter and land thief herself. 02:04  |  Victor 14/09/09
      24.   Swiss shock therapy 02:14  |  ron 14/09/09
      25.   Tess, congratualion you are racist 02:18  |  Dan 14/09/09
      26.   Chris Linthwaite, when you boycott your own counry call me 02:20  |  Dan 14/09/09
      27.   Swiss (Dino), are you going to boycott racist Swisserland? 02:22  |  History lives dude 14/09/09
      28.   Why are we even trying to justify our position 02:28  |  Dan 14/09/09
      29.   #1 Tess 02:50  |  17 14/09/09
      30.   Question for Tess 02:54  |  Reasoned Thinker 14/09/09
      31.   According to the petition signed by Jane Fonda Tel-Aviv is ... 04:39  |  Boris 14/09/09
      32.   #1 Tess 06:37  |  Suzy 14/09/09
      33.   "I may not have won at Venice if Jane Fonda was on jury " 06:40  |  Mike 14/09/09
      34.   H, learn `not mutally exclusive`, it`ll save you a lot of time... 07:19  |  BBSNews 14/09/09
      35.   Tess, a most excellent response... 07:39  |  BBSNews 14/09/09
      36.   correction and #1 08:51  |  Dave 14/09/09
      37.   WELSHMAN He sure fooled all the Venice film critics but you know 10:06  |  PETER SM 14/09/09
      38.   1 Tess,Film "Lebanon" is critical yet balanced semi documentary 13:11  |  Israeli Peacenik 14/09/09
      39.   Labhras How much does USA give arabs? 15:57  |  Petra 18/09/09
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