A Tale of Love and Darkness (PG) ***

Holy Alliance!

Never forget your roots. Give credit to Hollywood superstar Natalie Portman for shunning the hot blockbuster limelight to deliver a nice poignant drama in A Tale of Love and Darkness. Impressive in her directorial debut Ms. Portman does a Ricky job navigating the troubled waters of a nation in conflict while wrestling with problems of her own on the home front.

By now the world knows of all the problems inherent in the Middle East. Relationships between Israelis and Palestinians have undergone umpteenth changes over time. Set in Modern Israel this smart adaptation of the  best selling novel from noted writer Amos Oz our story revolves around the marriage of Nadia to struggling writer Amos Oz. between the two the pair have a long young son.

Scenes depicting the birth of Israel to the family’s befriending of a Palestinian couple to Oz”s workaholic lifestyle and fondness for other women weigh heavily on Nadi’s mind. Not too political but with quaint subtleties A Tale of Love and Darkness reveals a depth of humanity and family ties seldom seen in most Hollywood fare. Consider this small film to be a flower in the desert and well worth cultivating for yourselves.

By Alan Samuel