The Little Traitor

Summary

Based on the acclaimed Amos Oz novel Panther in the Basement, this uplifting, multi award-winning film captures the unlikely bond between a kindly British soldier and a spirited boy set against the backdrop of  the birth of Israel.  Eleven-year old Proffy Liebowitz and his militant friends want nothing more than the departure of the occupying forces. While out after curfew, Proffy is seized by British Sergeant Dunlop. Instead of arrest, the boy is reprimanded and returned home to his parents. The chance encounter leads to a deepening relationship between ostensible foes. When neighbors question his allegiance, Proffy is forced to confront a tribunal and difficult lessons about friendship.

DIRECTOR’S STATEMENT (partial)

"A filmmaker is almost always asked, “What was it about the book that made you want to adapt it? Direct it?” There was so much in this tale: a period of history relatively untouched in cinema, the themes of friendships that cross enemy lines and the author’s pacifism. But, for me, the deciding factor was that as I read the book, I could see the expressions in the eyes of the characters. And when that happens, the language of film begins.

I knew that putting this movie together would be no easy task. For the film to have the authentic quality created by its pristinely authentic author, it would have to be filmed in Israel. It couldn’t be Crete, or Rhodes, or Morocco standing in for Israel; it had to be filmed in the streets of Jerusalem. We were filming a movie about Israel’s right to exist as she fought for her continued existence. The movie, the reality, the characters, the history, the news jumbled together. We saw the war through the perspective of our movie, and made the movie through the perspective of the war around us.

But louder than the sounds of the planes above us, we heard the words of Amos Oz:

“You make peace with your enemy precisely because he is your enemy. It’s for the sake of life, not love.”

Awards

2008 Winner - Palm Beach International Film Festival, Audience Award: Best Feature
2008 Nominated - Award of the Israeli Film Academy, Best Costume Design