God's Sandbox
God's Sandbox
An Israeli woman falls in love with an Arab Muslim.
AVAILABLE ON DEMAND
OFFICIAL TRAILER
SYNOPSIS
Liz, a successful author arrives at a beach in the magical Sinai Desert in search of her runaway daughter Rachel. While there she meets a Bedouin storyteller who reveals to her the tragic love story between Leila – an Israeli tourist – and Najim, the son of a Bedouin Sheik. A passionate affair that took place many years before on the same exotic beach with the two lovers caught amidst warring cultures and the tragic decision by Najim to bring Leila into his Muslim tribe where Leila is exposed to a traumatic tradition. Find out what secrets are divulged, whose lives are changed and which ghosts come back to haunt them.
TECH SPECS
Runtime: 86 minutes
Format: 1:85 (35MM)
Sound: Dolby SR
Rating: R
Genre: Drama, Foreign, Romance
Language: English
Country: Israel
CAST & CREW
Directed by: Doran Eran
Starring: Juliano Merr, Meital Dohan, Razia Israeli, Orli Perl & Sami Samir
AWARDS, FESTIVALS, PUBLICITY
Best Film — Manchester Film Festival
Best Director — Vermont Film Festival
Special Jury Award — Worldfest Houston
Official Selection — Karlovy Intl. Film Festival
Official Selection — Jerusalem Intl. Film Festival
Official Selection — Kolkata(India) Film Festival
Official Selection — Dubrovnik Intl. Film Festival
Official Selection — Israel Film Festival
Official Selection — Blue Sky Film Festival
Official Selection — San Diego Jewish Film Festival
Official Selection — Atlanta Film Festival
“In “God’s Sandbox,” a provocative film that gathers strength as it goes along, it’s good…an intriguing premise and compelling performances…”
Kevin Thomas,Los Angeles Times
“…moments of genuine power here…Claudio Steinberg’s photography is lovely to look at, lending the film’s desert landscapes a grandeur that renders it a down-home version of “Lawrence of Arabia.”
Saul Austerlitz, Forward Magazine
“Before we delve into social politics, let’s step back for a moment and appreciate the dreamy beach setting of Doron Eran’s “God’s Sandbox.” …a fairly well-made film, reasonably directed by Eran, and it is a plea for women’s rights…”
G. Allen Johnson, SF Chronicle
“Razia Israeli has the kind of wizened face you don’t come across often – a mix of the late Viveca Lindfors and Gena Rowlands-in-torment – and her visage fights for screen dominance with beautiful yet scary shots of seemingly endless Sinai Desert horizons…”
Johnny Huston, SF Bay Guardian
“Dohan is a particularly fetching heroine, while Merr is convincing as the tent-raised nomad who defies his heritage for a forbidden love…”
Dan Pine, Jewish Weekly
“Tech credits are solid, with pair of primitive surgical procedures handled with visual discretion but plenty of screaming. Acting is strong particularly from female lead Meital Dohan.”
Eddie Cockrell, Variety
‘The story is revealed in erotic flashbacks set awash in a sea of bright colors and beautiful panoramas. The film’s theme is timely and a sad social commentary about the state of women in a culture that demands a barbaric pre-matrimony ritual that still occurs all too frequently in the modern world. Highlighted by nuanced acting this romantic, sexy thriller works well but contains mature subject matter and nudity’”.
Idan Ivri, Jewish Journal
“God’s Sandbox” is well-shot, well-filmed, well-acted and interesting primarily because it goes so crazily off the rails, both romantically and politically. The movie is not at all boring.”
Michael Wilmington, Chicago Tribune
