The Wedding Doll

The radiant Hagit (Moran Rosenblatt), 24-year-old protagonist of Israeli filmmaker Nitzan Gilady's The Wedding Doll, dreams of getting married. Because of cognitive disabilities, Hagit lives with her mother, Sara (Assi Levy). For years, Hagit has worked for a family-owned toilet paper company, and in her spare time she makes wedding dolls and studies to become a dress designer. Since she once almost dropped her infant niece, Hagit's brother thinks she would be better off in a group home. In secret, Hagit has been seeing her boss's son, Omri (Roy Assaf), meeting in the off-hours on an outcropping that overlooks the Negev desert. When outsiders make fun of Hagit, Omri defends her, but does not disclose their relationship. She thinks he intends to propose, but his intentions are actually far murkier. Similarly, Hagit's mother has been seeing a man at the hotel where she works, but keeps this from her daughter (Hagit rarely sees her birth father, who moved out of town for work). When Hagit risks losing her job due to a possible factory closure, she begins to look for another, but worries that she won't see Omri again. The dramatic tension increases as Hagit continues to crave independence, while Sara doubts that she can handle it. A fine character study with a strong central performance by Rosenblatt, this is recommended. (K. Fennessy)