The Debt

The Debt, a remake of a 2007 Israeli film Ha-Hov, is what I call an “arthouse thriller” or even a classical thriller. This film has intrigue and tension as well as thought provoking ideas, well crafted characters and an intelligent script. Modern or mainstream thrillers offer thrills and action but there is nothing going on beneath the surface of the roller coaster ride. Once the thrill is over you can move on without a second thought. The Debt leaves you with questions and thoughts that linger long after the tension is released.

The film moves between Israel in 1997 and East Berlin in 1965. The daughter of two Mossad agents has just released a book detailing the heroic exploits of her famous parents who brought a Nazi war criminal to justice in 1965. Rachel Singer and her ex-husband Stephan Gold, along with another agent, David Peretz, went undercover to East Berlin in 1965 to bring Dr. Bernhardt, a Nazi fugitive known as the Surgeon of Birkenau, back to Israel to stand trial. They kidnap this evil, Mengele-like doctor but their escape goes awry and they eventually have to kill him before returning to Israel as heroes.

At least that is the official story, the truth may be somewhat more complicated. Soon after the book launch party a morose David commits suicide and Stephan approaches Rachel with the news that an elderly man in a Ukrainian old-age home is babbling that he is Dr. Bernhardt. Although long retired, Rachel reluctantly agrees to accept a new assignment from the now wheelchair bound Stephan.

From here the action moves via flashback to 1965 East Berlin and the undercover operation carried out by the three Mossad agents. This is where the movie really excels, capturing the tension and drama of their secret mission behind the iron curtain. There is sexual tension between the men when Rachel arrives at their small apartment, as well as personality conflicts that arise from being in a small apartment under stressful circumstances.

All the actors excel, but the character of Rachel is clearly they center of the movie and Helen Mirren and Jessica Chastain bring both the old and young Rachel to brilliant life.  Rachel has the job of posing as a patient to visit Dr. Bernhardt who is working with an alias as a fertility doctor. The scenes of her submitting to an examination by a man responsible for such horrific atrocities is excruciating and you  can feel her pain as he probes her physically and mentally. What might be innocent physician conversation takes on menacing tones and Rachel begins to wonder if he is suspicious of her and testing to see if she is a Mossad agent.  Rachel must eventually use one of her visits to subdue Bernhardt so David and Stephan can pose as paramedics to take him away.

The kidnapping and the attempted escape are full of suspense and tension as the agents must race against the clock and time their crossing out of East Berlin perfectly. It does not go perfectly and they become trapped in their small apartment with their repugnant hostage. The tensions ratchet up even more as they now must care for the monstrous Nazi while he plays mind games and spouts vicious anti-Semitic taunts.

The agents must grapple with moral questions and contemplate their justification to kill another human as well as the political ramifications of their actions. The group’s idealism is tested and they must navigate the ethical and emotional consequences of what they are doing as well as their own feelings of isolation and claustrophobia. It was easier when the mission was moving fast and they did not have time for contemplation. Now, trapped in East Berlin waiting for a new escape plan they must make tough choices. Dr. Bernhardt seems to be a man who deserves death but not only would that make them judge and executioner, it would also deny Israel the chance to have a public trial and show the world the horrific crimes he committed.

The choices they make in that East Berlin apartment in 1965 have both personal and political consequences that reverberate through their lives and the lives of their families and fellow Israeli’s for decades. After detailing what happened on that fateful mission, the film returns to 1997 and continues to build to a gripping conclusion. To tell you more would spoil the surprises.

The Debt is an intelligent, suspenseful drama that weaves its morality tale within an espionage and action framework.  It is a shame films like this can only muster a lukewarm reception from audiences that seem to be divided between arthouse snobs and action knuckleheads. The Debt deserves more attention and hopefully it will find an audience on home video. It is available on Blu-Ray, DVD and various on-demand services.

Fellini's Roma

Federico Fellini has created some of the most enduring cinematic classics of all time. The best Fellini movies are filled with magic and move within a dreamlike realm or flow like visual memories. Like memories, they often do not have a structured narrative and concrete character development but instead string together related events and impressions of interesting people and places. Watching these movies is like listening to fantastical, impressionistic stories told by a friend or relative who has lived the type of life we can only imagine. In Roma, Fellini actually narrates the film and thus is literally telling the audience this tale.

Roma is Fellini's love letter to the city where he came of age both professionally and personally. It is loosely structured around a fictional Fellini and his relationship with and impressions of this incredible city throughout various stages of his life. The first scenes show how Fellini became captivated by the thought of Rome as schoolboy in a small provincial town. Later, as a young man, Fellini arrives in Rome and is immediately drawn into the vibrant and colorful life of the city. The family with whom Fellini is renting a room welcomes him to their evening dinner at a local cafe. It is a wonderful scene showing a raucous and enjoyable gathering of the locals at the outdoor restaurant laughing, yelling, eating and drinking wine. It is an affectionate scene of a communal way of life that disappeared in the U.S. decades ago but that I still saw vestiges of during my short time in Italy. The Italian dinner is an evening social event and here it is displayed in all its loud, hand-gesturing glory.

Roma moves back-and-forth in time, juxtaposing scenes of Roman life in the then-current 1970s with other periods during Fellini’s lifetime in Fascist and post-Fascist Italy. This non-linear style emphasizes that Rome is a modern city that is still very closely tied to its historic past. In Rome, every day life transpires in the shadow of the ruins of the Coliseum. The nostalgic Rome Fellini remembers from the ‘30s and ‘40s is contrasted with scenes of him working on a movie about Rome in the ‘70s. The filmmakers show hippies hanging out in the park and the older generation complaining about how the city has changed. The film crew also has to navigate the endless traffic jams that fill the modern Roman streets. The closing scene of the film is also a surreal combination of modern and ancient Rome. Fellini’s camera moves through the dim nighttime streets of Rome basking in the timeless beauty of the city. Suddenly, this reverie is interrupted by an army of motorcyclists roaring through the streets. Although loud and fast, the cyclists bring their own type of otherworldly beauty to the scene with their headlights shining amongst the monuments and buildings of classical Rome.

Of course, no portrait of Italian or Roman life would be complete without mentioning the Catholic Church. Fellini does so in his typically subversive and humorous way by presenting an elaborate church fashion show. Again juxtaposing two opposites of Roman life, the fashion industry and the Catholic Church, Fellini has fun with roller-skating priests modeling the latest fashion in robes and nuns displaying large, elaborate habits. This scene seems more gently farcical than profane even while it is clearly mocking the excesses and absurdities of both the church and high-fashion culture.

The scene that best epitomizes the mingling of past and present in Roman life takes place during the construction of subway tunnels under the city. The drilling crew suddenly breaks through a wall into a buried villa from ancient Rome. Filled with frescoes and statues and other signs of ancient Roman life, the villa is eerily lit by the workers lights as they wander through the damp remains of Romans from 2,000 years ago. To everyone’s dismay, the workers helplessly watch as the frescoes begin to quickly deteriorate after being exposed to the air. It is as if they cannot survive once exposed to the modern world. This does not seem to be a condemnation of the modern world but rather a warning to be protective and respectful of the past while moving forward.

Throughout the film, Fellini shows affection for all aspects of Rome. As he narrates this character study of the city, Fellini is not like the old curmudgeon complaining about the changes. He is simply showing Rome through his unique perspective - in its beauty and its faults, in its history and its modern evolution. Roma is like a postcard from Fellini inviting everyone to experience the Eternal City. As Fellini himself once said: “Rome is the most wonderful movie set in the world.”