A Forgotten Exodus, a two-part documentary made by the Dutch film-maker Marcel Prins. The film has been broadcast on the Dutch television channel NPO. With the establishment of the state of Israel in 1948, the situation of almost a million Jews, whose communities had been settled in the region for millennia, deteriorated. Eight former refugees, born in Baghdad, Aleppo, Tripoli, Fez, Cairo, Aden and Sana’a tell how they were forced to flee as children or teenagers to Israel. They talk about how the atmosphere changed and how they were forced to travel (most illegally) by truck, boat or plane out of their countries of birth.
Their stories are brought to life with animation and film clips rarely seen before. For several interviewees, the horrors of 7 October 2023 brought back memories of anti-Jewish violence and terror in Arab countries. The experiences they describe are more relevant than ever.
This loving tribute to Gene Wilder celebrates his life and legacy as the comic genius behind an extraordinary string of film roles, from his first collaboration with Mel Brooks in The Producers, to the enigmatic title role in the original Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory, to his inspired on-screen partnership with Richard Pryor in movies like Silver Streak. It is illustrated by a bevy of touching and hilarious clips and outtakes, never-before-seen home movies, narration from Wilder’s audiobook memoir, and interviews with a roster of brilliant friends and collaborators like Mel Brooks, Alan Alda, and Carol Kane. Remembering Gene Wilder shines a light on an essential performer, writer, director, and all-around mensch.
To mark the 50th anniversary of the Yom Kippur War, Israel’s National Archive has released the official protocols of Prime Minister Golda Meir’s office from the time of the Yom Kippur War, documents unknown to the public until now. Dozens of stenograms and other documents describe what took place in Israel’s seat of power at the time, including accounts of the minor moments that led to major decisions during the war. These documents leave no room for doubt. Despite the conventional image of “Golda” and the myth of her shortcomings during the war, what these documents show is that she actually managed the war effort vigorously and assertively; she convinced the U.S. to send military aid, saving Israel from the clutches of defeat, and bringing about its victory. Despite the war’s steep cost, the facts show that Golda did not fail. In fact, Israel’s achievements resulting from the war made it possible, five years later, to reach a peace agreement with Egypt.
The film brings for the first time the story of the Israeli radio station Beit Shidir. With the establishment of the State of Israel and the immigration of Jews from Arab countries, the radio station was an active site for producing intelligence and political warfare against Arab countries in the 1940s, 1950s, and 1960s.From the outside, it was a radio station that broadcast news and songs in Arabic, whereas in practice, the broadcasts were used by the administration for propaganda, psychological warfare, changing public opinion in Arab countries, and activating agents through codes implanted within the broadcasts. Soon the broadcasts became the most terrifying threat that agitated the rulers of the Arab world, and the broadcasters in it were named by the competing radio stations ‘The Israel Broadcasting Corporation’s Propaganda Orchestra’.
Palme d’Or winning director Marco Bellochio tells the true story of the Mortara family. In the Jewish quarter of Bologna in 1858, it was discovered that the seven-year-old son of the Mortara family was secretly baptized as a baby by his nurse. On this matter, the Papal law is unquestionable: he must receive a Catholic education. So by order of the Cardinal, soldiers seize their child. Distraught, his parents will do anything to get their son back. Supported by public opinion and the international Jewish community, the family’s struggle quickly take on a political dimension and becomes entangled in the larger clash between the realms of Catholic authoritarianism and the aspirations for equality and the unification of Italy.