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Esther (Hebrew: אסתר) is a 97-minute 1986 Austrian-British-Dutch-Israeli Hebrew-language independent underground dramatic historical experimental art film directed by Amos Gitai, his directorial debut. The film tells the story of Esther from the Hebrew Bible's Book of Esther and stars Simone Benyamini, Zare Vartanian, Mohammad Bakri and Juliano Mer-Khamis.

This article may contain an excessive number of citations. (October 2018)

Esther
DVD cover art
Directed by	Amos Gitai
Written by	Amos Gitai Stephan Levine
Starring	Simone Benyamini Zare Vartanian Mohammad Bakri Juliano Mer-Khamis Shmuel Wolf Rim Banna Fouad Awad Tarik Kopty George Khleifi [he]
Cinematography	Henri Alekan Nurith Aviv
Production companies	Interkerkelijke Omroep Nederland Film4 Productions Herzliya Studios [he]
Distributed by	Facets Multi-Media
Release date	1986 (1986)
Running time	97 minutes
Countries	Austria United Kingdom Netherlands Israel
Language	Hebrew

Synopsis

When King Ahasuerus (Zare Vartanian) of Persia drives out of his court Queen Vashti for refusing to show up before him, a frantic search for young virgins is unleashed throughout the kingdom, extending from India to Ethiopia. Esther, an orphan who was raised by her Jewish uncle, Mordecai (Mohammad Bakri), has entered the King's harem, having chosen her as his wife without knowing she was Jewish. At court, she has thwarted an attack against the King thanks to information provided by her uncle. For the service rendered, Esther and Mordecai have become the only free court characters not to prostrate themselves in front of anyone. However, when Mordecai refuses to bow to Minister Haman (Juliano Mer-Khamis), the latter commands the death of all of the Jews of the kingdom under the seal of the King. This is discovered by Esther and Mordecai, who devise a plan to save their people. Mordecai acts in advance against Haman ordering the vengeful extermination of all of those who want the death of the Jews.[1][2][3]

Cast

• Simone Benyamini as Esther
• Zare Vartanian as Ahasuerus
• Mohammad Bakri as Mordecai
• Juliano Mer-Khamis as Haman
• Shmuel Wolf
• Rim Banna
• Fouad Awad
• Tarik Kopty
• George Khleifi [he]

Production

The film marked the directorial debut of Amos Gitai,[4] who also wrote the screenplay.[5] It was shot by Henri Alekan and Nurith Aviv (with Ilan Yagoda [he] assisting), and cast by Levia Hon [he].

Developed at Herzliya Studios [he] and financed by Interkerkelijke Omroep Nederland and Film4 Productions, the film was distributed by Facets Multi-Media.

Release

The film was screened at the May 1986 Cannes Film Festival during the International Critics's Week, at the October 1986 Torino Film Festival where it also won several awards, and at the 36th Berlin International Film Festival on 21 February 1992. The film was released in Israel, where it premiered at the Tel Aviv Museum of Art, together with Berlin-Jerusalem (1989) as part of a DVD boxset in 2005.[6]

Critical response

Stephen Holden of The New York Times opined that "[t]hough not especially entertaining, it is quite handsome and bristling with ideas."[4] In Israel, however, some reviewers were more negative. Daniel Warth of Ha'ir, while noticing similarities to the works of Pier Paolo Pasolini, Bertolt Brecht, and Miklós Jancsó, stated that the film "is an artistic pretension which remains nothing but an aesthical drill with unsophisticated political declarations."[7]

References

Citations in article

Sources used

• Wacker, Prof. Dr. Marie-Theres [de]. Das biblische Estherbuch zwischen Palästina und Israel. Zum Film Esther von Amos Gitai (1986) und seiner Kontextualisierung [The Biblical Book of Esther Between Palestine and Israel: On the Film Esther By Amos Gitai (1986) and Its Contextualization]. In: Zwick, Prof. Dr. Reinhold, Hrsg. (2013). Religion und Gewalt im Bibelfilm [Religion and Violence in Bible Films]. Film & Theologie [Film & Theology], Band 20 (in German). Marburg: Schüren Verlag [de], Juli 2012, S. 39–59. ISBN 9783894727604. OCLC 818726511. Retrieved 1 October 2018.
• Meroz, Tamar (27 March 1986). "Purim Now" (PDF). Haaretz, reprinted in: Esther: An Amos Gitai Film, Paris: Agav Films, 1986. Tel Aviv-Yafo: M. DuMont Schauberg and Haaretz Group [ar; de; he]. pp. 19–21. OCLC 745373991. Retrieved 1 October 2018. Reprinted as “Esther” in: Willemen, Paul, ed. (Autumn 1993). The Films of Amos Gitai: A Montage. BFI Film Classics. London: British Film Institute. pp. 61ff. ISBN 9780851704166. OCLC 882549941. Retrieved 4 October 2018.
• Neeman, Rachel (2 April 1986). תנ״ך עכשיו [The Bible Now] (PDF). Koteret Rashit [he] (in Hebrew). Tel Aviv-Yafo and Rishon LeZion: Histadrut’s Society of Workers [he]’s Davar, Klal [he], and Yedioth Ahronoth Group’s Yedioth Ahronoth. Retrieved 1 October 2018. English translation: Neeman, Rachel (2 April 1986). "The Bible Now" (PDF). Esther: An Amos Gitai Film. Paris: Agav Films, 1986. pp. 22–23. OCLC 745373991. Retrieved 1 October 2018. Reprinted as “Esther” in: Willemen, Paul, ed. (Autumn 1993). The Films of Amos Gitai: A Montage. BFI Film Classics. London: British Film Institute. pp. 56–61. ISBN 9780851704166. OCLC 882549941. Retrieved 4 October 2018.
• Zwick, Prof. Dr. Reinhold [de]. "Mit Esther für Versöhnung Streiten: Zu Amos Gitais filmischer Aktualisierung der biblischen Erzählung" [Solving Conflicts With Esther: On Amos Gitai’s Cinematic Modernization of the Biblical Tale]. Biblical Interpretation: A Journal of Contemporary Approaches, Band 14: Jahrgänge 1–2, Januar 2006, S. 54–75 (in German). Leiden: Brill Publishers. Retrieved 30 September 2018. Nachgedruckt in: Exum, Prof. Dr. Jo Cheryl, Hrsg. (March 2006). The Bible in Film — The Bible and Film: Reprinted From Biblical Interpretation Volume 14, 1–2 (in German). Leiden: Brill Publishers, S. 54–75. ISBN 9789004151901. OCLC 611759359. Retrieved 30 September 2018.

Further reading

• Willemen, Paul (1993). The Films of Amos Gitai: A Montage. BFI Film Classics. London: British Film Institute. pp. 56–62. ISBN 9780851704166. OCLC 882549941. Retrieved 4 October 2018.
• Privett, Ray (11 June 2009). Série Exil partie 1, Esther et Berlin Jérusalem [Exile Series Part 1, Esther and Berlin-Jerusalem]. Cinémaction: Revue trimestrielle Cinémaction (revue) (in French). Condé-sur-Noireau: Éditions Charles Corlet. pp. 52–57. ISBN 9782847062915. Retrieved 1 October 2018.
• Pras, Sylvie, éd. (August 2003). Amos Gitai (in French). Paris: Centre Georges Pompidou. pp. 116ff. ISBN 9782844262264. OCLC 54542427. Retrieved 1 October 2018.
• Toubiana, Serge [ca; fr; it; ja]. Piégay, Baptiste (2003). Exils et territoires: Le cinéma d'Amos Gitaï [Exiles and Territories: The Cinema of Amos Gitai]. Collection Auteurs [Auteurs Collection] (in French). London, New York, New York, Strasbourg, et Paris: Phaidon Press’s Cahiers du cinéma et Arte éd., juillet 2003. pp. 144ff. ISBN 9782866422257. OCLC 237852120. Retrieved 1 October 2018.
• Variety's Film Reviews, Volume 19: 1985–1986. New York, New York: Cambridge Information Group’s R.R. Bowker and RELX Group’s Reed Publishing. February 1990. ISBN 9780835227995. OCLC 655330431. Retrieved 1 October 2018.
• Rooke, Deborah W. (June 2018). "Chapter 26: "What Shall We Do With the Tainted Maiden?": Film Treatments of the Book of Esther". In Walsh, Richard G (ed.). T&T Clark Companion to the Bible and Film. Bloomsbury Companions. London and Edinburgh: Bloomsbury Publishing’s T&T Clark. pp. 330–332. ISBN 9780567666215. OCLC 985072500. Retrieved 30 September 2018 – via Google Books.

External links

• Esther at Amos Gitai’s Official Website Archived 22 September 2019 at the Wayback Machine
• Esther at IMDb
• Esther at AllMovie
• Esther at Rotten Tomatoes

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