Disengagement clearly refers to the Israeli government’s current policies of withdrawal from Gaza and the forced destruction of settlements. But, in the imaginative hands of Amos Gitai, disengagement takes on another, much subtler, more personal meaning. As the two levels of significance speak to each other, Gitai employs all his considerable artistry to explore the term both emotionally and intellectually. The result is one of his finest creations.

The universe of Disengagement is split between France and Israel. In the film’s first half, we are introduced to Uli (Liron Levo), a young Israeli who travels to France for his father’s funeral. There he meets his French half-sister Ana (Juliette Binoche, who also stars in Le Voyage du ballon rouge). The mood oscillates between quiet reflection and a playful sense of rediscovered connection. As they grapple with their forced disengagement from a beloved – and clearly influential – parent, the siblings find their own re-engagement a source of both comfort and joy. Reality intrudes in the form of their father’s will, the contents of which shock Ana, revealing secrets from the past that she thought were hers alone. Forced to follow her father’s wishes and return to Israel with Uli, Ana comes face to face with the country’s present reality. As the official policy of disengagement is ruthlessly enforced in the settlements, she struggles to re-engage with her personal history.

Gitai has never been afraid to confront Israeli realities. In the extremely powerful Disengagement, he is well-served by both an intelligent script and a group of performers who play to their strengths. Binoche continually seems to reach new heights as an actor and Levo is equally fine as Uli. However, it is Gitai’s unerring ability to find the right chord, both in the larger sense of the politics at play and in the more heartbreaking intimacies that act as counterpoint, that gives this film its breathtaking impact. (info from Toronto Film Festival).

Available in English & Hebrew, with English or Hebrew subtitles

Israel/France Drama 2007, 108 mins

Director:Amos Gitai
Writers:Amos Gitai & Marie-Jose Sanselme
Cast:
 Juliette Binoche ...  Ana
 Liron Levo ...  Uli
 Jeanne Moreau ...  Françoise
 Barbara Hendricks ...  Barbara
 Dana Ivgy ...  Dana
 Hiam Abbass ...  Hiam
 Tomer Russo ...  Tomer
 Israel Katorza ...  Israel
 Yussuf Abu-Warda ...  Youssef
 Uri Klauzner ...  Uri