AHED’S KNEE World Cinema

Following the theatrical screening, watch a special pre-recorded conversation with director Nadav Lapid moderated by AFI Festivals Programmer Malin Kan.

Filmmaker Y, widely known for his insufferable arrogance and self-righteousness, has just arrived in the remote Arava Valley to introduce his film at the local library when Yahalom, a librarian under the Minister of Culture, presents him with a waiver dictating that he must not stray from pre-approved topics in his remarks. Privately struggling with the waning health of his mother, Y becomes enraged and, when Yahalom expresses sympathy, the filmmaker seizes the opportunity to expose governmental hypocrisy. Spinning wildly around such complex questions as the moral obligation of a citizen whose country is becoming increasingly oppressive and censorial, and the inherent privilege in speaking out against such injustices, the latest from celebrated Israeli filmmaker Nadav Lapid is a provocation as intimate as it is extreme. –Malin Kan