Product Details

• Actors: Yehuda Shaul, Arik Ascherman, Ronny Perlmann, Jonathan Pollack
• Directors: Terje Carlsson
• Format: Color, DVD, NTSC
• Language: English
• Region: Region 1 (U.S. and Canada only. Read more about DVD formats.)
  
• Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1
• Number of discs: 1
• Rated: NR (Not Rated)
• Studio: Choices Inc.
• DVD Release Date: November 8, 2011
• Run Time: 59 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• ASIN: B005TF24KU
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #74,201 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)

Editorial Reviews

Review

Kansas City Jewish Chronicle Kansas International Film Festival offers Jewish flavor Written by Keith D. Cohen, Contributing Writer Thursday, September 22 2011 Israel vs. Israel is a powerful documentary that will stir up discussion and debate. It follows four Israeli peace activists who oppose the military occupation in the West Bank and want more humane treatment for the Palestinians. The protest groups represented in the film are Breaking the Silence, Anarchists Against the Wall, Rabbis for Human Rights and Checkpoint Watch. Filmmaker Terje Carlsson filled the roles of producer, director and cinematographer. He is also credited for the original musical score. The movie brings up the issues of nationalism versus religion and differentiates between the state of Israel and the biblical land of Israel that God promised to the Jewish people in perpetuity. The excellent cinematography takes you to places that you will not see on your tour when visiting from the United States. The hatred is most evident in Hebron where soldiers are constantly demanding that the camera be turned off. The movie is slanted toward those opposing what the government is doing and the extreme security precautions. It pushes for territorial compromise and moral behavior that treats human life as holy. The documentary is partially in Hebrew with English subtitles and has a running time of 58 minutes. My rating 3 1/2 out of 4 stars. --Kansas City Jewish Chronicle

Israel vs. Israel: A Cinema Political Review Lee Thomas - The Brunswickan September 28, 2011 Throngs of old women in headscarves, being herded through a cement-walled check stop. School children having their bags searched by armed men carrying big black guns. Civilians throwing rocks at soldiers, who reply with a hail of bullets. The bloody corpse of a protestor being dragged away by his companions. The series of brutal images is difficult to watch . . . and impossible to forget. In his intensely provocative new documentary, director Terje Carlsson explores Israeli resistance of the occupation in Palestine. For those unfamiliar with the history of the conflict, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict has been ongoing since 1967, when Israel conquered the Gaza West Bank and became an occupying military force in the Palestinian territories. After more than 40 years of occupation, life for the Palestinian people remains harsh and restricted. In Israel, the subject of the occupation is polarizing, a socially-taboo topic that divides friends and families. Religious Jewish citizens of Israel opposed to the occupation are often viewed as unpatriotic or blasphemous. Israel vs. Israel examines the stories of four Israelis actively opposing the actions of their state, and the numerous social and legal challenges they face every day. The situation in Palestine is one of the greatest tragedies of the world today, said Tracy Glynn of the Conservation Council of New Brunswick and host of Cinema Politica screenings at Conserver House. We see it in the news, but we don t always get the full picture. (Israel vs. Israel) tells the stories we don t hear. Indeed, the passionate struggles of the four activists depicted by Carlsson are as moving as they are startling. A grandmother, fighting for more compassionate treatment of Palestinians at check stops, invites the audience into a private conversation between her and her nationalist son. An ex-combat soldier campaigns to break the code of silence surrounding the occupation, and is harassed in the streets by his neighbours. You re not afraid? asks the voice behind the camera. Of course I m afraid, replies the young man, but his voice and determination are unwavering. These are the faces of the Israeli resistance, and they share a common goal: to end the unlawful Israeli occupation of Palestine and restore peace to a nation fraught with violence. The documentary, shown at Conserver House and co-hosted by the Jews for a Just Peace Fredericton and the Fredericton Palestine Solidarity, coincides perfectly with current news events regarding the conflict. This past Friday, Palestinian Authority chairman Mahmoud Abbas submitted an application for full membership in the United Nations. Of the 15 Security Council member states, nine must approve the application before the entirety of the UN membership is permitted to vote on the issue. Many obstacles lie in the path of Palestine s bid for membership, not the least of which is the US and Canadian commitments to supporting the Israeli state. Whether this incident marks the beginning of a Palestinian Spring or will simply become another event in the long and complex Israeli-Palestinian history, remains to be seen. --The Brunswickan

The best political films of 2010 by Ezra Winton on December 16, 2010 ISRAEL VS. ISRAEL (Terje Carlsson, Sweden, 2010) The last thing an American Jew expects to be called by another Jew is a Nazi, yet this is the reality progressive Jews fighting the illegal occupation inside Israel face from fanatic Israeli Jews. ISRAEL VS. ISRAEL is one of the most important documentaries I have seen in the growing arsenal of cinematic testimonies to the oppression of the Palestinian people. So many films have documented the devastation and despair of Palestinians yet few films highlight the lesser-known struggle of progressive Israeli and international Jews who risk their careers, reputations, and lives for the Palestinian cause. Carlsson s one hour exploration of these unsung heroes is a moving portrait of the fight from the inside four men and women who stand up to both the Israeli state and to fanatic, violent and mentally unbalanced settlers. Disparate moments of bravery are woven together and make up a larger picture of solidarity and community of a social, political and cultural movement that includes Israeli citizens, rabbis, former IDF soldiers, and Jews from the West. What they face is the overwhelming violence of the Israeli state as it continues its policy of occupation, oppression and expansion as well as fundamentalist militants whose children are encouraged to throw stones and sewage at elderly Palestinian women as they pass in the street. The images are shocking and terrifying. That such cruel manifestations of life on this planet exist is heartbreaking. Celebrating those that defy their own government, their own people, and who risk life and limb to fight with the Palestinians is one of the most important stories ever to be told from this ongoing conflict. (EW) --Art Threat

Product Description

Israel vs. Israel is a documentary about Jewish peace activists who face skepticism and criticism from their fellow Israeli citizens. A Rabbi, a soldier, a grandmother and an anarchist - four very different Israelis whom share a common goal: to achieve peace in the Middle East and end the Israeli occupation of the Palestinian Territories. Undeterred, they promote a peaceful solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict in order to improve the lives of Palestinians and their fellow countrymen alike. Using in depth interviews and dynamic footage to narrate their inspiring stories, Israel vs. Israel provides a unique perspective on the struggle to find a peaceful solution of this decades-long conflict.

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Very informing, good viewpoint, well-done documentary., November 2, 2011

By 

Leah - See all my reviews

This review is from: Israel vs. Israel (DVD)

I'm a college student, studying at a private liberal arts school and I am studying abroad in Istanbul, Israel, Palestine and Cairo this coming spring. Israel vs Israel was being screened as a "Reel Talk" event (a film showing followed by discussion) and I decided since I was going to be traveling in Israel it would be worth checking out. The movie was very well-done, and was really informing for an individual who really had no idea about the Israeli/Palestinian conflict. Even though the point of this film is not simply to inform about the conflict, but inform about peace activists who are working within Israel - it laid out the background to the motives of these peace activists in a clear and easy way for people to understand.

I liked the viewpoint coming from the peace activists, especially one whom they focused on who was young, a bit older than me, and had already been involved in numerous demonstrations and has entirely devoted his life to helping restore peace between these two countries and end the occupation. It struck me that this man, only a bit older than me, has already started work towards making his world, our world, a better place - and that inspired me to think about how I want to change the world during and after my college years. The range of people they interviewed was very interesting as well, ex-Israeli soldiers, college-aged students, rabbis, etc.

Overall, I really enjoyed this film. It contains lots of violence, and some very gruesome images/video shots, but without those I don't think the point about how serious of a conflict this is would get across. Those images help convey the level of hatred that is going on between these two countries and why the work of the peace activists is so important. I would like to see a similar film done in the future, but this time from the Palestinian side. Overall - very well done and a documentary worth checking out if you are interested in the conflict in the middle east.

5.0 out of 5 stars Not something you are going to learn about in school!, February 21, 2012

By 

beck - See all my reviews

This review is from: Israel vs. Israel (DVD)

Imagine waiting two hours every morning to get to work.
Imagine your land being taken away from you, and then given to abusive settlers who terrorize your family, friends, children.
These are daily occurrences in the lives of Palestinian people, as exposed in this film.
Israel vs Israel uncovers the truths that major US media sources don't report on.

Terje Carlsson's Israel vs Israel is essential to watch before deciding who to side with, Israel or Palestine. Prepare to be moved.
I am surprised that all too many Americans are unaware of the atrocities that are committed by the Israeli government. The information in this documentary is not something you are going to learn about in school, even though the information displayed is essential to understanding the conflict in Israel and Palestine. I especially encourage all students of International Relations, Middle Eastern Studies, Political Science, Peace Studies, Journalism and Film to take the time to watch Carlsson's documentary. Spreading awareness about the truth of the Palestinian Israeli conflict is the first step to putting an end to injustices in Palestine. This film successfully lays out what is happening, and Israelis who are aware of and against their government's decision to continue occupying Palestinian territories. This film will inspire others, including myself, to act.

1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Israeli peace activists for a just solution of the conflict, December 6, 2011

By 

Jonas - See all my reviews

This review is from: Israel vs. Israel (DVD)

Israel vs. Israel is a movie for those who are interested in getting to know a critical point of view on the occupation of Palestine from within the israeli society.
The film portraits four israeli activists, accompanying their political work and reflecting it in interviews.

Yehuda Shaul from Breaking the Silence tells the perspective from inside the IDF: how to manage an occupation. During the second Intifada he served in Hebron mainly to protect 500 settlers living in-between 200000 Palestinians.
These Palestinians are more or less jailed. If they want to go to Jerusalem they need to apply for a permit to leave the fenced Westbank. They are controlled for security reasons by the military at checkpoints.
Ronny Perlman from Machsom Watch is a woman who cares about what is going on in these waiting-lines. She talks to soldiers for accelerating the process; she helps when there are problems with permits; or pushes to open the humanitarian gate for ill people.
Acting for the dignity of every human being does as well Arik Ascherman from Rabbis for Human Rights.
His basis is a reading of the holy scriptures of Judaism in which Gods love to every human being trumps his written and believed plans for the land.
The most radical in a common sense seems to be the co-founder of the group Anarchists against the wall Jonathan Pollak, having served his last sentence in spring 2011 for actions against the fence. This barrier annexes 12% of palestinian land according to internationally recognized 1967 borders.

The movie gives an insight to the struggle of the Palestinian people and the peace-seeking activism of four honorable Israelis to recognize Palestinian dignity and rights.