Cupcakes

A frothy and fun Israeli comedy, Cupcakes finds a half-dozen demographically-mixed friends and neighbors thrust into the international spotlight when an amateur video of their spontaneous performance one night goes viral. When Anat (Anat Waxman), a fortysomething baker and mom discovers that her husband is leaving her, she turns to her pals Ofer (Ofer Schechter), Efrat (Efrat Dor), Dana (Dana Ivgy), Keren (Keren Berger) and Yael (Yael Bar-Zohar) for comfort while an international talent show called Unisong plays out on television. Noting the juxtaposition of Anat's trials with the TV program, the group makes up a song for her and records it. Suddenly, the sextet is called upon to represent Israel at the next Unisong contest. Director Eytan Fox keeps this spirited tale deftly moving along as each of the six overnight sensations finds his or her life going on fast-forward up to and through the broadcast. Nicely juggling all of the characters' storylines and conflicts, the film becomes a tale of multiple small triumphs. Recommended. (T. Keogh)