aka Orhim le-rega

Every time I get to see a foreign movie, especially one that is based around some sort of real events, I’m always moved on a different level than I am with a typical domestic flick. In Off White Lies, we follow along with a father and his 14 year-old daughter as they venture across Israel during the war with Lebanon circa 2006. Libi (Elya Inbar), the daughter, has just come from America to stay with her estranged father Shaul (Gur Bentvich), who has no real home or job.

What always lingers in my mind while watching a film like this is just the idea of what it must be like living in that particular part of the world. Shaul, as well as pretty much every other character in the film, deals with avoiding bombed villages and living in underground fallout shelters as if it’s the norm. Putting myself into that mindset is an eye opening experience to say the least, and makes a movie far more effective and interesting that simply looking at it on the surface.

Young Libi, who we’re given the impression is accustomed to living in the States – when she talks to her mother in California on the phone, or when she switches from Hebrew to English – also seems to be indifferent to her new living conditions. Actress Elya Inbar accurately portrays the rebellious teenager who really makes you feel for her, she comes off as a normal teenage girl rather than an attention seeking character, which really makes the film feel more personal rather than a spectacle.

While the idea of this situation seems comical on the surface, it lays the groundwork for several scenarios that are both entertaining as they are serious. Shaul tells off-white lies to find a place to stay with Libi. They wind up with a family that winds up bringing them together while at the same time causing them to learn more about themselves. There’s a very touching scene with Libi singing to her father in a restaurant when she finds out it’s his birthday. There are then scenes with the two arguing, and those where Libi is angry towards her parents. It’s all about the emotions of the characters, which all of the actors project extraordinarily well.

This is one of those films that starts with an interesting premise. It then meanders into a series of events with the characters, and suddenly winds up open-ended and possibly unfulfilled. I personally am not bothered by this style of filmmaking. Off-White Lies is more of a slice of life rather than an adventure story. We follow Shaul and Libi in a very important and difficult time in both of their lives, and follow them through events that will cause them to find themselves and each other. To me this is more effective than simply seeing a clearly defined story fly by on the screen; it makes it more human. While the film drags at times, and isn’t very exciting, it provides an intriguing look into the lives of two interesting characters and their relatively unusual circumstances.