This 2002 sleeper from Israel shows life as it truly is for many Israelis: tough, gritty, and overwhelming. Are we referring to Arab-Jewish issues? For once, not at all. The purpose of Broken Wings is to show how many Israelis can't afford to live, and as a result suffer terrible stress trying to raise a family and make ends meet.
See the two women above? They are mother and daughter, and they are running as fast as they can. They are part of a family of five: the daughter has three sibs, and the mother has recently lost her spouse, who was wonderful as a father and helpful as a wage-earner.
We get to know each family member in extraordinary detail. The mother tries her best to hold down a job at a hospital and still care for her kids. The children are deeply troubled by their desperate plight: the older ones, typical confused teens, try to sort out their own needs and means of survival as they care for the younger ones.
The film is brilliant. In a very short window (about an hour and a quarter), we feel as if we are there with the family, trying to stay close, connected, and hopeful, in spite of one reversal after the next. We feel for each member, because we get to know each so well. Rarely has a film given such clarity of character development and plot.
The upshot? The people we meet could be from any country. There is nothing typically "Israeli" about them, nothing social, political, or religious. The flick thus offers a universal portrait of families who undergo hardship and pain as they deal with life's daunting challenges.
Grade: A An excellent, creative work.
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