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THE FAREWELL PARTY Send This Review to a Friend
It takes chutzpah to seek laughs from the subject of of euthanasia. Writers and directors Sharon Maymon and Tal Granit have done just that with their Israeli film. But they have also hedged their bets by mixing the comedy with heartfelt emotion involving those who believe that they have the right to end their lives in the face of terminal illness and senility. The result is a highly unusual blow on behalf of the right to die, with emphasis on the human issues rather than legal questions involved.
The scene is a home for the elderly in Jerusalem, where one enterprising resident named Yehezkel, played with stoicism and understanding by Ze’ev Revah, has inventively created a crude machine that can be used to end a life. It looks sort of like a Rube Goldberg contraption.
The routine is for filming a person deciding to end it all attesting to that fact that it is a personal decision, not one by the facilitators, and then pushing a button to release the fatal dose. There is humor In Yehezkel being assisted in designing the machine by a former veterinarian, Ilan Dar as Dr. Daniel. If he knows how to eliminate animals, why not cancer-ridden Max, played with the requisite agony by Shmuel Wolf (no relation of mine).
There is understated comedy involving preparations and the group supporting the efforts walking along the corridor on the secret mission. Also, when word gets out about what those contriving to eliminate the long-suffering are up to, one desperate man threatens to expose the conspiracy unless his demand for aid is met. The retirement home squad could found a booming business.
The emotional tug comes especially with respect to one couple. The wife, Levana, played sympathetically by Levana Finkelshtein, is slowly succumbing to Alzheimer’s, and she wants to die before she loses all control and is no longer hserself. Her husband is Yehezkel, who finds himself in the position of having to apply his principles for the woman he loves.
The filmmakers have wisely tread gently with the humor instead of turning the story into a farce, thereby making the comedy reflective of life in counterpoint to the emotions expressed. They deserve credit for a special film marked by daring, one that is different from other movies that have dealt with the right to terminate one’s existence. A Goldwyn Films release. Reviewed May 22, 2015.
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