Arts & Entertainment THE ONE, THE ONLY, THE ORIGINAL. Palestine, 1947 The Little Traitor recalls Zionist-British conflict. Tom Tugend Jewish Journal of Greater L.A. T FISHER THEATRE • MAY 18-23 Tickets at Fisher Theatre box office, Ticketmaster.com , 800-982-2787 & all ticketrnaster outlets • Groups of 12±: 313-871-1132 or email GroupSales a NederlanderDetroit.com Info: 313-872-1000 —BROADWAy iN DETROI T.com • Broadway in Detroit sponsored by your Southeastern Michigan Lincoln Mercury dealers • DriveLM.com LINCOLN REACH HIGHER 32769 NORTHWESTERN HWY. FARMINGTON HILLS 248-737-9600 WWW.RJSGRILLE.COM FIRE-GRILLED BURGERS RIBS, SALADS, PASTA, STEAKS, -FISH, SANDWICHES... -- - g I kt : HAPPY HOUR -SPECIALS 4PM-7PM MON-THU -14111 " 41_ HOUSE STEAK WITH COUPON EXPIRES 5-31 -1 0 EXCLUDES BEVERAGES AND ALCOHOL EXCLUDES BEVERAGES NOT VALID WITH ANY OTHER OFFER NOT VALID WITH ANY OTHER OFFER - CARRYOUT ONLY BEST BURGERS AND RIBS IN TOWN - WE GUARANTEE IT! ga:ffri _2 (5,f WS, cf LOW= FAT AND CHOLCSTCDOL PIEDMONTESE BURGERS 56 April 29 2010 CHECK OUT OUR NEW LUNCH SPECIALS he Little Traitor, open- ing Friday, April 30, at the Landmark Maple Art Theatre in Bloomfield Township, harkens back to 1947, when "Palestinians" referred to the future State of Israel's Jewish inhabitants and the hated enemies were British soldiers wearing red berets. The film, based on the semi- autobiographical novel Panther in the Basement by Israeli author Amos Oz, combines the coming-of-age story of a young patriot with historical insights on the struggle for a Jewish state. Proffy (short for "professor") is an 11-year Jerusalem boy who hates the British soldiers who occupy his land, impose strict curfews and con- duct midnight house raids. With two like-minded playmates, he forms the "underground cell" FOD ("Freedom or Death"), which sprays "British Go Home" graffiti on walls and tries to disable a British convoy by scattering nails on the road. On most evenings, Proffy sneaks up to the rooftop to scan the roads for the British enemy through binoculars. Not infrequently, his attention strays to a lovely young woman in a neighboring apartment in various stages of undress. One evening, Proffy, played with remarkable authenticity by Ido Port, is caught after curfew hours by British Sgt. Dunlop, played by a sympathetic, if slightly corpulent, Alfred Molina. An unlikely but warm friendship develops between Proffy and the Bible-reading soldier during mutual language lessons, in which Dunlop explains the meaning of "snooker" and Proffy introduces his friend to the subtleties of "meshuggah." After a short time, Proffy's fellow young freedom fighters discover the rela- tionship and denounce him as a traitor. Proffy is hauled before a Jewish Agency "court" and sternly examined by an interrogator played by Theodore Bikel. In one of its most emotional scenes, the film re-creates the almost unbear- able tension of the November 1947 vote by the United Nations, which will determine the partition of Palestine between Arabs and Jews. Families huddle around the radio, keeping score Ido Port and Alfred Molina in The Little Traitor of each country's vote, and then burst into the street in wild jubilation after the final count. Lynn Roth, who directed The Little Traitor and wrote the screenplay, is a veteran Hollywood writer and pro- ducer who has won numerous awards, especially as showrunner (executive producer) of the long-running 1980s television series The Paper Chase. She also has been a longtime teacher in the master class for Israeli filmmakers in the Los Angeles/Tel Aviv Partnership Program and said that she had dreamt for decades about making a film in Israel. After extensive preparations, she began filming The Little Traitor in the old Musrara quarter of Jerusalem in the summer of 2006, and three days into the project the Lebanon War broke out. "It struck me as ironic that I was making a film about fighting in Palestine in 1947, and now, almost 60 years later, the bullets were flying again," she said. Despite such distractions, including the army call-up of some of her crew members, Roth "miraculously" com- pleted shooting the film in 28 days. A New York native, Roth said she is bound to Israel by many ties, not least the graves of all four grandparents in the Jewish state. ❑ The Little Traitor is scheduled to open Friday, April 30, at the Landmark Maple Art Theatre in Bloomfield Township. (248) 263-2111.