Waltz with Bashir (2008)
94%RT Audience Score: 91%
Awards & Nominations: Nominated for 1 Oscar
45 wins & 63 nominations total
A wholly innovative, original, and vital history lesson, with pioneering animation, Waltz With Bashir delivers its message about the Middle East in a mesmerizing fashion.
Waltz with Bashir is like a psychedelic acid trip through the horrors of war. The animation style is mind-blowing, with photo-realistic settings and under-animated movement that makes the faces of the characters even more haunting. It’s a powerful film that will leave you feeling shaken and moved. Plus, it’s a documentary, so you can feel good about learning something while also being entertained. Definitely not a movie to watch if you’re feeling down, but if you’re up for a heavy dose of reality, this is the film for you.
Production Company(ies)
Bridgit Folman Film Gang Les Films, d’ Ici Razor Film Produktion GmbH,
Distributor
Sony Pictures Classics
Release Type
Theatrical, Theatrical (Wide)
Filming Location(s)
MPAA / Certificate
Rated R for some disturbing images of atrocities, strong violence, brief nudity and a scene of graphic sexual content
Year of Release
2008
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Color:Color
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Sound mix:Dolby Digital
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Aspect ratio:1.85 : 1
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Runtime:1h 30m
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Language(s):Hebrew, Arabic, German, English
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Country of origin:United States, Australia, Belgium, Finland, France, Germany, Switzerland
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Release date:Release Date (Theaters): Dec 25, 2008 Limited
Release Date (Streaming): Jun 23, 2009
Genre(s)
Documentary
Keyword(s)
documentary, war, animation, Israeli, Sabra and Shatila massacre, post-traumatic stress disorder, journalist, psychologist, memory, futility of war, history lesson, innovative, original, Middle East, violence, nudity, atrocities, strong violence, graphic sexual violence, box office, gross USA, limited release, streaming, R rating, directed by Ari Folman, written by Ari Folman, produced by Ari Folman, Serge Lalou, Gerhard Meixner, Roman Paul, reviewed by Liam Lacey, David Ansen, Mary Corliss, Leslie Felperin, Roger Moore, Marc Savlov, Yasser Medina, Tom Meek, Felicia Feaster, Mattie Lucas, Kaleem Aftab, starring Ron Ben-Yishai, Ronny Dayag, Ari Folman, Dror Harazi, Yehezkel Lazarov, Carmi Cna’an, Mickey Leon, Boaz Rein-Buskila, genre, documentary, Hebrew, Sony Pictures Classics, critic reviews, audience score, rated R, budget, producer names, MPAA rating, critic names, actor names
Worldwide gross: $11,179,372
Worldwide gross (inflation-adjusted): $15,399,158
Worldwide gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 1,809
Worldwide tickets sold (est.): 1,679,297
US/Canada gross: $2,283,849
US/Canada gross (inflation-adjusted): $3,145,915
US/Canada gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 1,931
US/Canada opening weekend: $50,021
US/Canada opening weekend (inflation-adjusted): $68,902
US/Canada opening weekend ranking (inflation-adjusted): 2,091
Budget and Earnings Details
Production budget (est.): $1,500,000
Production budget (inflation-adjusted): $2,066,193
Production budget ranking: 2,027
Marketing and distribution budget (inflation-adjusted est.): $1,112,645
Box office net earnings to date (inflation-adjusted est.): $12,220,320
ROI to date (est.): 384%
ROI ranking: 351
Ronny Dayag – Self
Ari Folman – Self
Dror Harazi – Self
Yehezkel Lazarov – Carmi Cna’an (Voice)
Mickey Leon – Boaz Rein-Buskila (Voice)
Director(s)
Ari Folman
Writer(s)
Ari Folman
Producer(s)
Ari Folman, Serge Lalou, Gerhard Meixner, Roman Paul
Film Festivals
Awards & Nominations
Nominated for 1 Oscar
45 wins & 63 nominations total
Academy Awards
All Critics (153) | Top Critics (54) | Fresh (147) | Rotten (6)
Persepolis meets Full Metal Jacket in Ari Folman’s powerful and original animated war film.
September 14, 2010 | Rating: 3.5/4
Liam Lacey
Globe and Mail
TOP CRITIC
These depictions of the dementia of war have a hallucinatory power that can stand alongside those of Apocalypse Now.
July 6, 2010
David Ansen
Newsweek
TOP CRITIC
The message of the futility of war has rarely been painted with such bold strokes.
July 6, 2010
Mary Corliss
TIME Magazine
TOP CRITIC
Special, strange and peculiarly potent.
July 6, 2010
Leslie Felperin
Variety
TOP CRITIC
The look of Waltz with Bashir is what is most arresting. It’s a deep, multi-plane style of animation that incorporates photo-real settings, realistic renderings of the people and under-animated movement, especially of faces.
July 16, 2009 | Rating: 4/5
Roger Moore
Orlando Sentinel
TOP CRITIC
A dreamy, animated psycho-documentary.
February 26, 2009 | Rating: 4/5
Marc Savlov
Austin Chronicle
TOP CRITIC
A very powerful film about the horrors of war and the corrosive effects of dehumanization, told with a fast paced and splendid animation style. [Full review in Spanish]
December 2, 2020 | Rating: 8/10
Yasser Medina
Cinemaficionados
The somber reflection of war and renderings of absurd happenings along the way convey the horrors of war hauntingly. The composition, pace and tenor is nothing short of brilliant.
August 14, 2020 | Rating: 3.5/4
Tom Meek
Cambridge Day
Dreams are central to this shattering, not-to-be-missed animated Israeli documentary, which opens on a gothic note that suggests a particularly macabre graphic novel or the corrosive pessimism of film noir.
January 27, 2020
Felicia Feaster
Charleston City Paper
A powerful rumination on war’s human toll, crafted with a unique and singular eye.
June 6, 2019 | Rating: 3.5/4
Mattie Lucas
From the Front Row
A brave, damning and riveting piece of cinema that deserves to find an audience.
November 4, 2018 | Rating: 4/5
Kaleem Aftab
The List
A sensitive, remarkable piece of work that presents a devastating part of history in a way that never feels inappropriate, rather, it feels essential.
October 31, 2018 | Rating: 5/5
Cameron Frew
FrewFilm…
Plot
One night at a bar, an old friend tells director Ari about a recurring nightmare in which he is chased by 26 vicious dogs. Every night, the same number of beasts. The two men conclude that there’s a connection to their Israeli Army mission in the first Lebanon War of the early eighties. Ari is surprised that he can’t remember a thing anymore about that period of his life. Intrigued by this riddle, he decides to meet and interview old friends and comrades around the world. He needs to discover the truth about that time and about himself. As Ari delves deeper and deeper into the mystery, his memory begins to creep up in surreal images.
Trivia
Goofs / Tidbits
The film features Israeli filmmaker Ari Folman, who wrote, directed, and stars in this autobiographical animated film.
Ari-Folman.jpg
