What do you mean no one dies?!

When I come back from my relatively frequent trips to Israel, I usually haul with me a hefty stack of Israeli CDs. This past time, though, I decided to branch out a bit and get some classics of Israeli film. (Most of these movies are, well, self-indulgent, hyper-critical, and tedious, but Israeli cinema has started coming in to its own with beautiful films such as Walk on Water and Ushpizin. Slowly but surely...)

So Alan and I pulled out one of them for last night's entertainment: Halahakah, or, "The Troupe." The film was essentially a dramatized look at life in the Israeli army around the time of the War of Attrition. Young love, jealousy, and the typical rivalries among talented friends punctuated the otherwise flimsy story of an army band's rise to local stardom. It was a cute film. But I couldn't help but think the whole time...when are they going to kill off a character? Shouldn't they just get it over with? Come on!

When the film came to a heartwarming close with a slow-clap-worthy performance of the Eurovision hit "Halleluyah," I felt a little guilty. Really? No one dies? It was kind of jarring, and refreshing. Whaddya know, a happy ending...