Beyond The Walls

This Israeli-made film concerns rival gangs of Israeli and Arab convicts, led by Arnon Zadok and Muhamad Bakri, respectively, in a maximum security prison. Tensions between the factions are high, but when a singing prisoner known as the Nightingale, Boaz Sharaabi, wins a talent contest and appears on national television, both groups cheer his victory and realize they have a common bond. Zadok and Bakri then begin to cooperate in a scheme to protest the harsh conditions in the prison. Nominated for an Academy Award as Best Foreign Language Film, BEYOND THE WALLS presents the Middle East crisis in microcosm. Though it must be praised as a political statement, it is l...