Oscar hopeful ‘Foxtrot’ locked in Israel’s culture war
JERUSALEM — Israel’s contender for this year’s foreign-language Oscar has swept local film awards and scored high honours at the Venice Film Festival.
But before it even hit the silver screen at home, Samuel Maoz’s “Foxtrot,” a drama exploring Israel’s West Bank occupation and the modern Israeli psyche, has found itself caught in the crossfire of a raging culture war.
Culture Minister Miri Regev’s beef with Foxtrot is part of her ongoing battle with artists perceived as being critical of the Israeli government. Since taking office in 2015, Regev has moved to cut government funding to theatres and artists deemed disloyal to the state and troupes that refuse to perform in West Bank settlements.
Foxtrot plays out in three acts. Its title refers both to the name of an army checkpoint depicted in the movie and the dance, whose circular movement alludes to the cycles of generational trauma.