Etz Limon (Lemon Tree)

If foreign dramas are your thing, this is a very good one. The main languages are Hebrew and Arabic so you may need the subtitles, but that certainly does not get in the way of a very good story, told very well.

Hiam Abbass does another wonderful job. Her character self-describes as a lone wolf, and the use of that plays very well in the second half of the movie.

A relative new-comer Rona Lipaz-Michael is excellent here as the Israeli neighbor to Abbass's Palestinian character. Both women are left to deal with things in the wake of men in their lives over which they have no control. After those world's collide both women experience a personal hell.

We are left to wonder a few things about the plot but if you don't think too hard it is still a pretty good story. It is really the Israeli-Palestinian conflict on a very micro level, at least from some point of view. Why would the new Defense Minister move to a home exactly on the border next to a lemon grove his security team deems a real and present danger to national security? Why not live in a much safer location?

Watch this movie with someone who loves gardening AND politics if you can find that combination.

The Visitor

If you play drums, or any other percussion instrument, you should see this movie. If you were born in a country other than the United States you should see this movie. If you were born here and you don't see this movie, you have NO clue as to whats going on in the immigration debate. Regardless of your perspective, I recommend this movie to everyone.

There is something here for everyone. Good writing, good acting, good music, and a very real New York City. If you are able to sit still during this movie I suggest you have someone check for a pulse.

Richard Jenkins well-deserved his Oscar nomination for his work here. As I've said many times, sometimes good acting is more than delivering a good line. Jenkins, like Redford, Ford, and many other great actors who don't talk as a big part of their acting mojo. The rest of the cast is wonderful too.

Some sites have this movie listed as a crime drama. Really? To me this is much more of a romance, and a comedic one at that. I'm not saying its a romantic comedy. But it certainly has some good honest laughs. It may also make you cry however. Anyone who is a parent will be touched by this story. And if your kids are older, you may totally relate to the Mom is this story played perfectly by Hiam Abbass.

Watch this movie with a kind thought for the nearly invisible folks who mow, wash, fold, trim, cook, clean, scrape, gather, pick, package, deliver, serve, buy, sell, or otherwise deal with the stuff we need every day. I can't imagine it's worth the trouble, but they all say it is.