Event

Zaytoun

Charlotte Jewish Film Festival film

Directed by Eran Riklis (Lemon Tree, The Syrian Bride, The Human Resources Manager)

Zaytoun is an unconventional buddy film starring Stephen Dorff as an Israeli fighter pilot who is shot down over Beirut in 1982. He escapes from PLO captivity in war-torn Lebanon with the aid of a 12-year-old Palestinian refugee who is searching for his ancestral family home in Israel. The orphaned boy longs to return to his village in Israel, if only long enough to plant a zaytoun (Arabic for olive) tree that he and his father nurtured together. The unlikely pair, sworn enemies, slowly realizes that their journey will succeed only if they stick together.

Drama/Israel, United Kingdom/Hebrew, Arabic and English with English subtitles/107 minutes/2012

Reviews:

"It is a film about the potential for transcendence through friendship, about the mutual initiation of two characters into their respective humanity, and about beauty in the midst of a nightmare." - Huffington Post

"A buddy picture, with a conscience" - Empire Magazine

All ticket purchases for the Charlotte Jewish Film Festival are non-refundable. In the event a screening is cancelled due to inclement weather, an alternative screening date will be offered.