It
is impossible to claim the civilized world is winning the war on terrorism when
Hezbollah is part of Lebanon’s ruling coalition. Frankly, most of the West now
follows the “Obama Doctrine:” go easy on Hezbollah to curry favor with their
Iranian masters. Israel still fights the good fight and it will continue to
protect those who fought with them. Mona is a particularly sensitive example.
As the ex-mistress of a high-ranking Hezbollah terrorist/Lebanese government
official, she provided extensive intelligence to the Mossad. When she was
exposed, her handlers smuggled her out of the country and into a Hamburg safe
house. It will be Naomi’s task to protect her while she recovers from plastic
surgery, but her assignment will be considerably more dangerous than promised
in Eran Riklis’s Shelter (trailer here), which opens this
Friday in Los Angeles.
This
will be Naomi’s first field work since a devastating personal tragedy caused
her to take an extended leave of absence. It is supposed to be an easy way to
get back into action, so initially, she is not even supplied a gun. It will be
her job to masquerade as a nurse, tending to the bandaged Mona while she recuperates
from plastic surgery. Eventually, she will be resettled into a new life, with a
new identity. Yet, there are things Mona has trouble letting go, like the son
still held in the custody of her very former lover, Naim Quassem.
Of
course, there is friction between the two women at first, but respect and
eventually friendship slowly but steadily develops between them. Not
surprisingly, it turns out Quassem still holds a grudge against Mona. Quelle
surprise. As Mona bonds with her charge, her instincts become hyper-aware of
the danger swirling around them.
If
you want to understand why the Mossad is the most successful intelligence
agency in the world, watch Shelter.
They protect their assets instead of burning them. In contrast, the German BND
comes off looking pretty bad and it is rather clear our agencies would not have
acted much differently. Riklis’s handling of Mona’s motivation for working with
the Israelis is also smart and satisfying—it is deeply complex, yet profoundly
simple.
It
should be noted Riklis has bent over backwards to be sensitive to the
circumstances of Arab Israeli women (who chose to political identify with the
era of the British Mandate of “Palestine”) in previous films, such as The Lemon Tree. Indeed, empathizing with
a strong Middle Eastern woman like Mona necessarily involves a critical
rejection of militant terrorists like Hezbollah.
Israeli
Neta Riskin and the Iranian-born, Paris-based Golshifteh Farahani (who has
obviously given up all hope of returning home until there is a decisive regime
change) are quite extraordinary together. Riskin is icily reserved, but clearly
conveys how wounded and vulnerable Naomi is inside. Frankly, Farahani’s
performance is genuinely brave in many ways. Arguably, she is just as fragile
(if not more so), yet she vamps up the silk robe and surgical bandages better
than even Bette Davis could have in her prime.
With
its main characters confined to the claustrophobic flat, Shelter definitely shares a kinship with the classic films of
Hitchcock and Polanski, but it engages with wider geopolitical issues.
Frustratingly, it is likely to be overshadowed by Brad Anderson’s Beirut, but it is a vastly superior film.
In fact, it is the best espionage-counter-terrorism film of the year thus far,
and Riklis’s best since The Human Resources Manager. Very highly recommended, Shelter opens this Friday (4/6) in LA, at the Laemmle Town Center 5,
Monica Film Center, and Ahrya Fine Arts.
