Waltz with Bashir, an Israeli film by Ari Folman, is definitely different kind of war film seen in recent times. Going by the reviews and buzz it seems to be a trendsetter. It is an animation film but digs into war real time history of Lebanon war of 1982. The graphic recreation of horrors of war as a personal recount of painful buried memory makes it a serious film of new genre.

The political reality of the war, the personal standpoint of Folman and reaction of Israel government certainly makes it a political film of the year too. Israel–Palestine conflict is a delicate issue and very likely to create a controversy. Since the film has been accepted and acclaimed by Israeli government, the director’s intention and political leanings will be under scanner for long time. There will be many interpretations.

What needs to be lauded is the brave attempt of the director to pick such a serious issue and then recreate everything graphically using all animated characters. This could have easily been adapted into a typical war film with real missiles and bloody trails of war and all emotions. But director chose a different medium to create reality. The director may not have directly blamed one side or spelled the truth behind the war but then he is not obliged to do so. He is definitely not on the side of bloody war and permanent scars left by war. Any film which conveys important message of violence begets more violence and is no road to peace needs to be appreciated.

Via Independent