your feedback on
this piece.
|
|
Leila Sansour' s film "Jeremy Hardy v. The Israeli Army"
John Perkins
Jeremy Hardy isn't a comedian everyone has heard of. Until I saw Leila Sansour's feature-length documentary "Jeremy Hardy v. The Israeli Army" I'd never heard of him. I can only imagine Leila Sansour's pitch to distributors: it's like "I'm a celebrity, get me out of here", only no one's heard of the celebrity, and it takes place in a war zone, not a jungle. In the first 5 minutes of the film Jeremy Hardy asks the camera why Leila has such faith in the power of minor celebrity to change the world. It's little moments of uncertainty that make Jeremy Hardy's narration of events so successful.
After a quick "meet Jeremy" section in London, we find ourselves in Bethlehem for Easter 2002. War is on the horizon. Jeremy Hardy has joined the International Solidarity Movement, a group of peaceful pro-Palestinian activists in the West Bank. One poses with a kalashnikov in Manger Square. The next scene is in a Bethlehem hotel, watching activists training in non-violent methods. You can tell Jeremy Hardy isn't entirely happy to be there, he describes the activists as "vainglorious nutters". It's compelling viewing, the feeling of fear and nervous humour is palpable.
Over the next few days, he starts to bond with some of the activists - surely being shot at by a tank had nothing to do with it. His stay in Bethlehem is short - delegations arrive from embassies to pick up activists who have chosen to be evacuated. The Americans come with flack jackets and machine guns, the British with leather driving-gloves. "I'm so glad to be British", says Jeremy.
After a time in London sitting around watching the news and appearing on chat shows, Jeremy decides he has to go back to Bethlehem. He goes to visit Hassan, one of the International Solidarity Movement's (ISM) Palestinian organisers. Bethlehem is under curfew. Hassan hasn't left his house in days. The Star Hotel where Jeremy stayed hasn't had a single guest since the ISM left. It's at this point in the film that you realise that April 2002 was a turning point in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. We meet Adam and Huweida - she Palestinian, he Jewish American. They talk about the death threats his family have been getting in the US. It's actually quite funny. Jeremy joins an Israeli peace group bringing medical supplies to a Palestinian village under curfew. He buys a hat. Then, all too soon, it's time to go home.
If you're feeling sceptical, the film can be criticised on several levels. There's something of a Michael Moore feeling to the film. Though the filmmaker herself is Palestinian, she chooses to focus the film not on the plight of Palestinians but on the antics of a group of foreigners. There's not much on Israelis either. True, real suffering doesn't make great comedy. A lot of the film's humour doesn't come from the narration, but simply from camerawork. Jeremy using a wind-up mobile phone charger. Italian anarchists singing and clapping like they were at a picnic. Palestinians laughing at Jeremy. Some of the camerawork is bad. You can forgive a misfocused shot when you're being shot at, but when you're sitting at a table there's not so much of an excuse. But these are minor criticisms. The film is a very eloquent description of a very strange time and a very strange place. If you see a puzzled looking photographer in the background of a couple of scenes, that was me.
|
|
