Journalists, police officers and lawyers are among the prominent heroes of American cinema, but in feature-length Israeli cinema, which usually avoids genre patterns, they have almost no presence. That’s why Reut, the heroine of the beautiful film by Shiri Nebo Friedenthal, is an unusual cinematic character in our places. We find out what her profession is in the great opening scene. Late at night she sits in the back seat of a service taxi, and too close to her sits a sleepy man who invades her private space. When she wakes him up he wakes up and recognizes her. “You are the lawyer who put me in jail” he says. He goes on to say that he is now learning to act. “They fly at me there, they fly, because I’m like a former criminal,” he says, but it’s clear that he remains a violent guy. This entertaining scene testifies to Friedenthal’s great talent in writing dialogues and constructing scenes. This talent turns “All I Can” into a well-made genre film, which hooks us to the drama on the screen and emotionally involves us in the fate of its heroines. The least successful thing about the film is its unmemorable name.
Later we will discover that Reot Slutsky (Anya Bukstein) actually prefers to ride a bicycle – an effective (even if not original) image of her being an independent spirit who carries her life in her hands. She is supposed to receive a large lawsuit against a corrupt mayor that will advance her career at the state attorney’s office, but before that Reut is asked to fill the place of another attorney in a sex crimes case. The plaintiff is 22-year-old Efrat, who accuses her former neighbor (Liron Levo) who she claims committed indecent acts on her about ten years ago, when she was 12. Due to the nature of the lawsuit, the trial is being conducted behind closed doors, in front of one judge (Yovav Levy), and based solely on On the testimonies of the plaintiff, her stormy partner (Maggie Ezarzer), and the defendant who denies.
That is why there is no stormy legal drama of the American type, with surprising revelations and witnesses who appear at the last minute. Instead, we get intimate and emotionally charged scenes, and the whole drama is carried on the shoulders of Sharon Streevman in the role of the young prosecutor. With the encouragement (or pressure, according to the lawyer?) of her partner who is older than her, she is determined to go to the end, but the trauma sticks the words deep in her throat and does not allow them to come out. It is an introspective, defiant and exciting performance in its power, which deserved to win the Ophir award. But Streevman didn’t even win a nomination, perhaps because she’s not yet a well-known actress – the only one in a star-studded cast. The one who did win the nomination for Ophir is Muni Moshunov, in the role of defense attorney for the accused, who is trying to undermine Efrat’s testimony. It’s an antipathetic role not very typical of Moshunov, and he’s as good as ever. In general, the film is excellently played from wall to wall by all the participants, who received well-written dialogues and characters.
The discovery of the film. Sharon Streevman in “Everything I Can” (courtesy of Transfax)
The film progresses simultaneously on two levels, when after the testimony in court we go home with Reut, and meet her grandmother and her mother (Helena Yarlova), who has never known a good relationship in her life but desperately wants Reut to get married and have grandchildren. And there is also the suitor (Roi Assaf), a “Frod Teri” advocate, who is surprised to discover that Raot – originally his wife – is of Russian origin, and that she is not interested in children. All these relationships are beautifully designed, and add warmth and humor and other human layers to the character of the heroine, during the hours when she takes off her professional suit. Bookstein portrays Reut as a cautious woman with a restrained appearance, who refuses to submit to family and social dictates. This creates a conflict between her and her mother, which culminates in a family celebration, where the gray color spectrum is replaced by rich colors and songs that express longing for the countries from which they came to be in Israel.
“All I Can” designs interesting heroines who arouse our sympathy, and carefully addresses the issue of sexual exploitation, while clarifying why such claims are so difficult to prove under existing laws. This is a topic that only recently came to Israeli cinema and also motivates Michal Aviad’s “Working Woman” from 2018. and “Barrenness” by Mordechai Vardi, which also comes out this week. Only the understated and not quite dramatically resolved ending is unsatisfying. It feels more like the end of an episode of a TV series, and contributes to the feeling that the film can, and should, be a series pilot. Perhaps this feeling is also due to the fact that fine legal series such as “City of Asylum” and “FMATTA” have recently blossomed on Israeli television. In any case, if it does happen, I will be the first to sit down in front of the television.
4 stars. Directed by: Shiri Nebo Friedenthal. With Anya Bukstein, Sharon Stribman, Maggie Ezarzer, Moni Moshunov, Helena Yarlova, Yoavel Levy, Roy Assaf. Israel 2022, 87 min.