Tip:
Highlight text to annotate it
X
LONDON & KIRSCHENBAUM
Occasionally a film, or a play, but usually a film -
becomes a cult phenomenon.
For some unknown reason, a ridiculous, sometimes terrible film
turns into something people celebrate.
This happened to "The Hitchhiker", a forgotten film, never screened, shelved.
Yaniv Eidelstein rediscovered it.
It's almost a detective story, the way he discovered it.
Shmuel Wolf, who's now 80, starred in the film when he was young and fit.
We'll soon see him without clothes. Here, behind us.
Yaniv, what is this film? Who directed it, who produced it,
how was it shot, and why did it disappear?
It was filmed 40 years ago, 10 years before I was born.
42 years ago. -Yes, 1972. -A year before the war in '73.
Now I'm an expert, but I wasn't involved. Anyway,
I came across the trailer, and based on the trailer for this film
I knew this was something special. Because it's a movie about hippies...
They tried to make an Israeli hippie movie, with nudity, sex, drugs...
Who made it? -A man called Amos Sefer. It was his first and last film.
The film wasn't successful, so he didn't go on to other things.
The film didn't find a distributor. Not only did it not succeed,
It didn't even get a chance to fail.
Let's watch a clip, I'll just explain the story:
It's about a Jewish American fellow...
Perhaps he isn't Jewish, I don't know, who fought in the Vietnam war,
who comes to Israel and decides to set up a utopian republic
on Pharaoh's Island, not far from Eilat.
And of course... -Back when it belonged to Israel.
Yes. Let's watch a clip.
Shmulik, the cast was Israeli.
The lead actor was Asher Tzarfati, a wonderful actor, by the way.
But that's not his voice in English. It's dubbed, right?
It's Mike Burstyn. -Oh, Mike Burstyn...
They dubbed in Mike Burstyn's voice to make him sound American.
Mike Burstyn was born in the US. It's Mike Burstyn.
They made the film in English in order to become an international hit.
Mine was the only character who spoke no English.
I spoke a few phrases in Hebrew, because I spoke no English. I still don't.
It's interesting... The film was made in '72,
4 years after Woodstock.
By that time, a lot of people who went to Woodstock became insurance salesmen.
It arrived late to Israel. -The revolution was already over,
but here, they made a movie like this in English,
in order to succeed internationally.
That's one of the many reasons this movie didn't take the world by storm.
Do you sometimes attend screenings? How often is it screened?
Once a month. -Once a month, and I heard it's a real celebration.
An amazing celebration. -What do people see in it? The film is terrible.
You won't get it. You have to attend. It's hard to put into words.
What goes on? -People return, again and again.
The same people come again and again, which is...
What goes on in the theater... He brings a microphone and speakers,
gives it over to the people, and they tell jokes.
While the film plays? -Let me explain.
They amplify the ridiculousness... -This film falls short in many respects.
Lots of scenes have no dialog. Nothing happens.
They drive down to Eilat more or less in real time.
Minutes go by, and your soul starts to leave your body.
So the audience adds commentary, they get up on stage and dance...
We appear on screen, and some of the audience, young people,
who identify with the plot... They identify!
They get up on stage and get naked!
And play dead. And when we get up,
after getting shot, or not getting shot,
they get up and get off the stage. And dance. We dance on screen,
and the audience gets on the stage, that narrow area, like this table,
dance with us... Girls take off their tops, wearing only bras. -No...
It's true! -I swear. He never lies. -Intelligent girls!
In the movie, they don't even wear bras. -Not simple girls.
You need special intelligence in order to make fun of it. -When's the screening?
The first Friday of every month. -And you promise everything you said?
I don't want to repeat it... -And if they don't, you can get naked.
It's every month! Every month.
I'd just like to add that I'm 80,
and I directed a play at Tmuna theater,
"The Lesson" by Ionesco, which won an award.
Gilles Ben David won an award...
It's his first time directing. -40 years ago or now? -Now.
My wife's in it, and another actress, Miki Marmur... -Thank you.
Thanks for watching. -"The Hitchhiker". Cult film.
Go to Tmuna and also to the Cinematheque. Good evening.