The World is Funny

The World is Funny

A Film by: Shemi Zarhin
(Israel, 2012, 127  Minutes, Color, Hebrew,  English subtitles, Cast: Asi Levi, Eli Finish, Danny Shteg, Neama Shitrit, Or Ben Mellech, Moshe Ashkenazi, Ola Shor –Selektar, Yehezkel Lazarov, Shlomi Koriat, Rotem Zisman Cohen)

Shemi Zarhin's 5th film, takes place in his hometown of Tiberias, and transforms it into a land of fairy tales. A passionate comic tragedy, this is a film about bereavement, longing and the power of family. The World is Funny - Israel's box-office hit of 2012, nominated for a record 15 Israeli academy awards, is a complex allegory on Israeli society, far away from news headlines.

Aspiring writer Zafi has trouble composing endings to her stories. She uses her housecleaning jobs to find interesting tales. Among the accounts she collects and ties together is the story of estranged siblings: The oldest sister Yardena is shocked to discover she's pregnant since she hasn’t had sex with anyone in years, least of all her husband who has been sleeping in a different room ever since the tragic death of her daughter in the army.

Meanwhile her brother Meron has to deal with the return of Nessi, Meron's oldest son, who just woke up from a nine year coma following a traumatic accident. Golan, the youngest brother, is in the midst of his own tragedy - his girlfriend Natasha is dying of cancer. Helpless to do anything about her illness, he set out on a quest to reunite the "Gashashim" comedy trio for a performance, hoping to save her with laughter.

The film is populated by over 50 characters, each trying to be the heroe in his own story, each escaping from despair into the comfort and hope of their imaginations, and each wondering whether their tales are a reflection of reality, or perhaps reality itself is a story being told. 

FESTIVALS & SCREENINGS

• Nominated for a record breaking 15 Israeli Ophir Awards 2012

• Cinema South - Closing film

• Chicago International Film Festival - in competition

• Palm Springs Int'l Film Festival 2013

• Atlanta JFF 2013

• Tampa FL JFF 2013

• Northern Virginia JFF 2013

• New Jersey JFF 2013 - Opening Film

• Toronto JFF 2013

• Minneapolis JFF 2013 - Closing Film

• Denver JFF 2013

• Philadelphia Israeli FF 2013 - Opening Film

• Broward County JFF 2013 - Opening Film

• Spokane JFF 2013 - Closing Film

• Montreal Israeli FF 2013

• Tampa Bay JFF 2013

• Edmonton JFF 2013

• Paris Israeli FF 2013

• Oklahoma City MOA 2013

• JewishFilm (National Center Brandeis) 2013

• Silicone Valley JFF 2013

• Chattanooga JFF 2013
• Ottawa Israeli FF 2013
• Israel Film Center NYC Israeli FF 2013 - Opening Film
• Zagreb JFF 2013
• Winnipeg JFF 2013
• Filmisrael - Amsterdam Israeli FF 2013
• Portland JFF 2013
• Brazil Israeli FF 2013
• Shalom Europa FF - Strasbourg 2013
• Albuquerque International FF 2013

• Falmouth Jewish Congregation

• Avalon Theatre, Washington DC

• Singapore Israeli FF 2013

• Chicago Festival of Israeli Cinema 2013

• Houston JFF 2013

• Caracas JFF 2013

• Budapest JFF 2013

• Richmond VA JFF 2013 

• Cleveland JFF 2013

• Sonoma County JFF 2013

• Alper JCC, Miami FL 2013

• Hong Kong JFF 2013

• Columbus OH JFF 2013

• Bucharest JFF 2013

• The Russian American Cultural Center NYC 2013

• Palm Beach JFF 2014

• Jewish Alliance of Greater Rhode Island 2014

• Greater Phoenix JFF 2014

• Detroit JFF 2014

• Villanova University 2014

• Jacksonville JFF 2014

• JW3 London 2015

RELATED LINKS

Variety

Indiewire