Refugees who survived the Holocaust are on a tramp steamer headed for the Promised Land, or so they think in the opening scenes of Kedma, a movie by prolific Israeli director Amos Gitai.  In this movie made in 2002, Gitai looks at the problems that surrounded the creation of Israel through the eyes of the refugees who came to settle in their designated homeland.

After a long and hard trip aboard the cargo ship Kedma, European Jews who managed to live through WWII are at last nearing Israel.  It is 1948, just days before the official creation of the Jewish state.  But as soon as they arrive, British troops shoot at them in an attempt to get them to depart.  The Palmach, the Jewish defense force, hurry them off the beach into the hills, only to find out that Israel has been under siege since the UN announced its support for a Jewish homeland.  The poor refugees have survived one war to find themselves embroiled in another.  After weapons have been handed out and a crash course in their use has been given, the immigrants find themselves in the midst of an attack on an Arab hilltop.  The peace that they were hoping for isn't to be found.

Kedma is more of a diagnosis than a cure for the problems in the Middle East. The director clearly beleives that Israel was founded admist violence, perpetrated both on and by Jews, and that is the cause of it's current problems.  The movie laboriously illustrates that Israel wasn't started under ideal circumstances, but offers no solutions to the problems it faces.  I don't think there is anyone who won't agree that there are a lot of problems in this area of the world, and this film just states that obvious fact. 

The film ultimately fails both as a drama and as a history lesson.  You have to know a good deal about the background of the creation of Israel going into this film to be able to fully understand it; the movie doesn't spend a lot of time filling in the details.  The viewer is dropped into the story and has to fend for himself.

As a drama it is equally weak. The characters are not fully developed, their entire personality often revealed on one short speech.  The plot is clumsy and plodding, and it really can't make you care what happens next.  Equally tepid is the acting of the cast.  They seem to sleepwalk through the script.  Though the long opening scene of the refugees aboard the Kedma was interesting, the film goes downhill from there and ends up as a dull uninspired film.

Audio:

The stereo Hebrew language soundtrack is sufficient for the movie.  There isn't a lot of dynamic range, and some of the larger sounds come across as being muted.  The gunfire sounds more like cap guns being shot in a tunnel than real firearms, for example, but it doesn't distract from the movie.  There are optional English subtitles.

Video:

The video quality is also acceptable.  The widescreen image is enhanced for 16 X 9 monitors, and looks fine though not outstanding.  The film has a shallow field of focus, and details in the background are a little fuzzy.  The color scheme is mostly browns and tans and the occasional greenery comes across a little muted, as the director probably intended.  Though the picture is a little soft, there the transfer looks fine.

The Extras:

Also included on this DVD is a filmography of director Amos Gitai that includes trailers to three of his films including this one.  There is also a text based History Behind Kedma which is basically a timeline of the history of Israel.  The only other extra is a still gallery of production photos.

Final Thoughts:

I can't find a lot to recommend in this movie.  It fails as a history lesson:  unless you already know the events it is portraying you will be lost.  The plot is often both dull and confusing, with the acting is uninspired.  If you are really interested in this period of history, a rental might be in order.  Someone who is looking for an interesting film or an engrossing narrative on a part of history that still effects the world today should skip it.