Customer Reviews

In Search of Peace: Part One 1948 - 1967

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

The most striking part of this documentary to me was the footage that they were able to get a hold of which was truly amazing. Even those who have seen numerous similar titles and shows I think will be impressed. It was well done and provided a good base in facts for the interested viewer who wants to understand the present conflict in the middle east. I felt that it didn't delve too deeply into understanding each side's motives, but I think the idea is just to display the facts and leave it to the viewer. Overall I recommend it to those who would like to learn more about the situation.

This documentary is a must-have for anyone interested in Israeli history and the Arab-Israeli conflict. It covers the years 1948 to 1967 in excellent detail, covering a plethora of different topics. Instead of just hearing about wars, casualties, and truces, we also learn about Shula Cohen, a Jerusalem-born woman who relocated to Lebanon to get married and spent many years sending people, primarily children (among them three of her own), into safety in Israel, eventually getting arrested for her actions; the kibbutzniks who transformed the land and promulgated principles of equality and idealism; the people who worked so hard to make the arid Negev Desert bloom; Israel's theatre industry and how it changed over the years as the face of Israel changed from Russian immigrants to native-born people whose ethnic background was not Eastern European; the roughly 800,000 Mizrachim who had to flee to Israel from their ancestral homelands in the Mideast and North Africa; and the role American politicians and citizens have played over the years in helping Israel to survive.

A lot of stuff happened between 1948 and 1967, but somehow the most important events and personalities are able to be squeezed in without being shortchanged. It starts with the rebirth of Israel and the War of Independence that was immediately forced on the infant state, covers the 1956 war with Egypt, the Six-Day War of 1967, and the years of peace in between those events. However, to some viewers, it might feel as though it starts in media res, since a discussion of Israeli-Arab relations pre-1948 is vital to understanding more recent developments and why both sides feel the way they do. One gets a fuller picture if one knows, say, about their relationship during WWI, when the Ottoman Turks controlled the land, or about the anti-Jewish riots in Hebron in 1929. And although this is a very moving documentary, making one feel an incredible amount of pride that such a small nation, one that hadn't had a standing army in nearly 2,000 years, was able to not only declare its independence but to continually defeat much larger armies trying to destroy it, there's also a balanced view of the other side. One can't help but feel badly for the Arab refugees who were displaced in 1948, sent down the river by their own people and treated like garbage everywhere but Israel and Jordan, and one would be inhuman to deny them their equally valid feelings of sorrow instead of pride at the recreation of Israel or the reunification of Jerusalem. The Arabs interviewed in this documentary also seem like thoughtful articulate people; they're not the raving propagandists and anti-Semites that one might be accustomed to expect when talking to the other side. The soundtrack is also beautiful and moving.

Extras are the trailer, biographies of director/screenwriter Richard Trank, co-producer and co-writer Rabbi Marvin Hier, and conducter and composer Lee Holdridge, and a brief photo gallery. Overall, it's yet another triumph from Koch Lorber Films, which never disappoints with its quality documentaries.

Thrilling, most informative and even handed reporting on all the issues. A must for all persons interested to understand the Israeli-Arab conflict.

I think this is one of the best documentaries I ever saw about Israel. It has amazing footage from that era that I never saw previously. Also, it brings facts evenly and fairly, the good and the bad. I discovered quiet a few facts about that period of the history of Israel that people don't like to talk about. I think it is important to know all sides of the story. Besides general history, the film shows real people that were part of the process of creating the state of Israel, which adds a lot to the movie. I wish the authors will go into more details in the movie, but overall I very recommend it.

I was born and lived in Israel for many years. Spent alot of time learning the history of Israel. This DVD has some good footage, and appears to really try and explaine things. However it is very unclear, from the other reviews you can see the horrible foggy messages which were picked up. The rabbi here said if al gore would of been it would of been different and that arafat and rabin were close to peace. This is the stupidest idea the dvd gave. Arafat never wanted peace, only to drag it on and gain more power. It obviously sent the wrong message. The dvd is not all bad, there are very bias dvd's out there.

If you are familiar with the true history of israel than getting this dvd for the footage is good. If you are purchasing it for educational reasons, I think you should reconsider.

This DVD opens with the famous footage of Yassar Arafat and Yizchak Rabin shaking hands on the White House lawn after signing the Peace Accords under the guidance of President Clinton's administration. I felt a great deal of sadness as I watched this part, because that golden moment is long since past. We came so close to having peace back then! I cannot help but think that if Al Gore were president, he would have carried the peace process forward, instead of allowing it to break down into the chaos we have now... Be that as it may, this DVD is very thought provoking and, hopefully, will contribute to a better understanding of the history of the Arab-Israeli conflict.

The DVD chronicles the first two decades of Israel's existence, from just before its founding in 1947 to just after the Six Day War in 1967. The basic history is presented in a straight forward manner, without a lot of indepth discussion or debate. It's up to the viewer to draw their own conclusions. This makes it a good resource for history class, although, because it is almost two hours long, it would take two or three class periods. Thankfully, there is a chapter selection option so teachers can also use specific segments. (I love DVDs for this purpose -- winding and rewinding a VHS tape in class was a real drag.)

One of the best features is the huge amount of rare archival footage. Golda Meir is featured prominently as a fundraiser and a diplomat (she was not yet Prime Minister -- that comes later in the story.) Michael Douglas narrates in a quiet, almost contemplative voice, often tinged with a note of sadness, as he allows the images on the screen to speak for themselves. I was repeatedly struck by the way in which Jews and Palestinians are so often mirror images of each other. Palestinians fleeing the wars ended up in squalid refugee camps. Jews fleeing persecution in Arab countries lived in ramshackle tent cities. Jewish villages were massacred. Arab villages were massacred. In-fighting among various factions occurred on both sides.

But there was also hope for peace, and several moments when it might have happened, if things had gone differently. When King Abdullah of Jordan met with Golda Meir in 1948, he expressed a desire to live in peace with the new Jewish state, believing that "Providence" had brought the Jewish people back to their land. Unfortunately, Abdullah was assassinated before a peace treaty could happen. During the Six Day War in 1967, the Prime Minister of Israel offered peace to Jordan if Jordan would stay out of the war. King Hussein chose instead to attack Israel -- and lost control of the West Bank territories.

Not all of the film is about war and politics. We also see clips of some early Israeli theater companies, Leonard Bernstein conducting the orchestra, and hard-working Jewish farmers making the Negev desert bloom. The point is made, however, that Arab land was often seized under the pretense of "security" but really for its fertility or other non-military purposes. (When I was growing up I was told that Israel bought the kibbutz lands fairly, but have since learned this is not true.) Palestinians are interviewed to give their side of the story.

The DVD ends just after the West Bank occupation begins in 1967. That was a major turning point for Israel, which has, in turn, affected the last four decadesof her history. It was a good place to stop Part One of this documentary. Hopefully, there will be a Part Two that picks up the story from there.

Perhaps you should learn about the phrase "al-Nakba" as it goes a long way to understand what is going on in the Holy Land.

Al-nakba is the Palestinian equivalent of "shoah" and includes places like Deir Yassin and what happened in them. Yes, There was more than one massacre and destruction of a Palestinian village. Try this for an introduction:
[...]

Israel was sold as a "Land without a People for a People without a Land"; unfortunately, that wasn't true. The Palestinian people lived there until 1948 when they were chased out by the Stern Gang and Irgun.

How would you feel when you have a group of outsiders (European Jews) move into your land (The Palestinians) with the stated purpose of setting up their own country (Israel)? Especially after they have violently chased you from your home?

Anyway, this type of film leaves a lot of questions unanswered, such as why someone becomes a suicide bomber if they are so well treated by the Israelis? Another question to ponder is why Israel is filled with armed checkpoints if they have nothing to fear?

I mean Israel was a country without people. Or maybe it's just that the Israelis haven't treated the Palestinians like people.

The Palestinian camps aren't fit for dogs and the Israelis treat the Palestinians who do live in Israel as second class citizens. Beginning to understand why someone would become a suicide bomber?

Al-Nakba is painful to Palestinians, but more so to Israelis, as it well should be. But this period needs to be addressed before any real peace can be found.