Yossi Eini

Bethlehem tells the story of the unlikely bond between Razi, an Israeli secret service officer, and his Palestinian informant Sanfur, the younger brother of a senior Palestinian militant. Razi recruited Sanfur when he was just 15, and developed a very close, almost fatherly relationship to him. Now 17, Sanfur tries to navigate between Razi’s demands and his loyalty to his brother, living a double life and lying to both men. Co-written by director Yuval Adler and Ali Waked—an Arab journalist who spent years in the West Bank—Bethlehem gives an unparalleled, moving and authentic portrait of the complex reality behind the news.

A well-intentioned Arabic-Muslim handyman upends the day-to-day lives of the locals in a small Israeli village. Shortly after his arrival, a young woman is assaulted and the community quickly turns accusatory. His employer is the only one who believes him, but even those loyalties are tested as more information and secrets are uncovered.

It’s the Gulf War. Two soldiers, an American and an Iraqi, find themselves lost in the desert, and the relationship between them is seen through the eyes of an iguana. The American is trying to get through to headquarters so that he can be rescued. The Iraqi flatters the American, deferring to him as General Schwarzpot, and is willing to humiliate himself just to get some food and drink. When it becomes clear to the American that the Iraqi is hiding drugs, he promises him a good, rich life in America. At the moment of truth, though, he will leave him to his fate.