Films on the Subject of Peace (3) CrescendoHiroshima for Global Peace

Films on the Subject of Peace (3) Crescendo

#peacetimes

The team at Johakyu, which operates Hatchoza and Salon Cinema in Naka-ku, Hiroshima-shi, cinemas that screen over 200 films a year, is sharing their recommendations of films on the subject of peace that everyone should watch.

　There are still many unresolved conflicts around the world, including the protracted invasion of Ukraine today. Among these conflicts, the Israeli–Palestinian conflict is said to be the most challenging to resolve in the world. This conflict over the land of Palestine between the Arabs and the Jews, two groups with deep ethnic and religious differences, continue to claim the lives of countless civilians more than 70 years after the outbreak of the Palestine War, with no solution in sight.

　Crescendo, which will be screened at Hatchoza from September 16th to 22nd, is a moving film that brings together youths from both Palestine and Israel, where the conflict has persisted, to form an orchestra and perform a concert calling for peace. This film is said to have been inspired by the West–Eastern Divan Orchestra, an actual orchestra comprising Jewish and Arab musicians that was founded by the world-renowned conductor Daniel Barenboim to break down various barriers in the Middle East, and which continues to perform around the world today.

　Overcoming division and hatred, the youths open their ears to the music of one another and come together to play the same music with the same goal, creating a ray of hope for conflicts that are occurring around the world. Famous pieces in the film that play an important role in bringing together hearts and minds beyond what words can achieve include Ravel’s Bolero, Pachelbel’s Canon, and Dvorak’s From the New World.

　Israeli director Dror Zahavi, who has maintained a strong interest in the Israeli–Palestinian conflict since he was born, has said that the film represents an attempt to ask what we can do to move forward instead of simply portraying the reality as it currently is. The film has resonated with many viewers and won audience awards at film festivals around the world, but unfortunately, it has yet to be screened in Israel and Palestine, where it is set.

　Another film screened at Hatchoza in spring this year was West Side Story, a musical about youths who fell in love by rising above hatred that was set in the 1950s in New York City, where Puerto Rican and European immigrants had been engaged in violent conflict. According to director Steven Spielberg, his bold adaptation of this age-old classic in the current era was an attempt to convey the idea that love is capable of bridging any gap at a time when racial divisions have become an issue that affects many people in the audience.

　While the world has become more divided today due to COVID-19 and social disparities, as long as we continue to engage in mutual conversation by honoring each other’s humanity despite the intense conflicts on national and ethnic levels, we will be able to respect and understand each other’s position.

■Title: Crescendo

■Released in theaters nationwide from January 28th (Friday), 2022

Hatchoza, September 16th to 22nd

Director: Dror Zahavi

Screenplay: Johannes Rotter, Dror Zahavi

Cast: Peter Simonischek (Toni Erdmann)　

Daniel Donskoy (The Crown, Victoria)

Sabrina Amali

2019/Germany/English, German, Hebrew, Arabic/112 min/Scope/Color/5.1ch

Original title: CRESCENDO #makemusicnotwar

Japanese subtitles: Makino Kotoko/Subtitles supervised by: Hosoda Kazue

Distributor: Shochiku