Yossi

After nearly a decade, filmmaker Eytan Fox returns to the story he began with Yossi & Jagger (VL Online-6/04), which was about two Israeli soldiers who have a brief but passionate affair during their tour of duty on the border with Lebanon. The earlier film ended with the death of the younger man; Yossi finds the titular character (Ohad Knoller) still haunted by his lover's memory as he works long hours as a hospital doctor. Jarred by a visit from Jagger's mother for an examination, Yossi finally reveals the truth about her dead son's sexuality—an unnerving experience that results in him making a blunder in the operating room that necessitates a little vacation. While driving to the Sinai—a dangerous region—Yossi picks up four soldiers who have missed their bus. One of them, Tom (Oz Zehavi)—who is openly gay—persuades Yossi to stay at their hotel rather than continue his trip. Over the next several days, Yossi's emotional resistance is gradually broken down by Tom, and he finds himself reconnecting with another human being for the first time since Jagger's death. Fox's film effectively conveys both the pain of loss and the difficulty of recovering from grief, while also showing the enormous changes that have occurred in society's attitude toward homosexuality over the short space of a decade. A sharp and affecting character study with a decidedly hopeful outlook, this is recommended. (F. Swietek)