About this product

Product Information

When the Alexandria Ceremonial Police Orchestra flies from Egypt to Israel to perform at the opening of an Arab culture centre, they are left stranded at the airport. Their leader, Tewfiq (Sasson Gabai), orders the handsome violinist, Khaled (Saleh Bakri), to solve their predicament, but it turns out that he's gotten the wrong information. By that time, it's too late. All eight members are left standing alone in a quiet desert town far from their intended destination with no way to get where they need to go. Tired, hungry, and confused, they find shelter at a restaurant run by the pretty but brash Dina (Ronit Elkabetz). It's clear that Dina is bored with her lonely life, so she talks Tewfiq into letting the band stay over for the night.

Product Identifiers

ProducerEhud Bleiberg

EAN5035822094833

eBay Product ID (ePID)65756190

Product Key Features

ActorSasson Gabai, Ronit Elkabetz, Saleh Bakri, Rubi Moscovich

Film/TV TitleThe Band's Visit

DirectorEran Kolirin

LanguageEnglish\Arabic\Hebrew

Subtitle LanguageDanish\English\Finnish\Hindi\Icelandic\Norwegian\Swedish

Run Time83 Mins

Aspect Ratio1.78 Anamorphic Wide Screen

Release Year2008

FormatDVD

FeaturesWidescreen, Making of Featurette\Photo Gallery, Closed Caption, With Subtitles

GenreDrama, Comedy

Additional Product Features

Number of Discs1

Certificate12A/12

Country/Region of ManufactureIsrael

Hearing ImpairedEnglish

Additional InformationIsraeli filmmaker Eran Kolirin's debut feature, THE BAND'S VISIT, is a subtle, heartfelt, and humane work that goes a long way toward dissolving the incredibly complex cultural divide that continues to plague the Middle East. When the Alexandria Ceremonial Police Orchestra flies from Egypt to Israel to perform at the opening of an Arab culture centre, they are left stranded at the airport. Their leader, Tewfiq (Sasson Gabai), orders the handsome violinist, Khaled (Saleh Bakri), to solve their predicament, but it turns out that he's gotten the wrong information. By that time, it's too late. All eight members are left standing alone in a quiet desert town far from their intended destination with no way to get where they need to go. Tired, hungry, and confused, they find shelter at a restaurant run by the pretty but brash Dina (Ronit Elkabetz). It's clear that Dina is bored with her lonely life, so she talks Tewfiq into letting the band stay over for the night: he and Khaled will stay with her, and the others will be put up at the home of Itzik (Rubi Moscovich). Over the course of the night, Tewfiq and Dina bond, Khaled helps a hapless local discover his inner Romeo, and the other band members find themselves caught up in a domestic situation that is less than perfect.<BR>Kolirin perfectly navigates his film's slice-of-life tone, blending comedy and drama and poignancy without ever succumbing to one completely. In the wrong hands, this material could turn into a quirk-fest that parodies everyday life. Yet under Kolirin's assured command, it becomes something that feels like life itself. THE BAND'S VISIT is funny, lonely, inspiring, sad, and beautiful all at once.

ReviewsTime Out - With its themes of social displacement subtly and skilfully enmeshed within a pleasingly straightforward shaggy-dog narrative, this is one of those films that runs at you with open arms, and youÆll find it very difficult not to succumb

ScreenwriterEran Kolirin

Sound sourceDolby Digital 5.1

Movie/TV TitleThe Band's Visit

Director of PhotographyShai Goldman

Consumer AdviceContains one use of strong language