Guy Davidi’s ‘Innocence’ Evokes Young Lives Lost to Military Mentality
Anna Tatarska In Israel, military service is mandatory. Director Guy Davidi, whose documentary “Innocence” premiered at the Venice Film Festival in the Horizons section, served as well. “I didn’t want to be a combatant, to hold a gun. I felt used, abused, like an instrument for the country. I already knew I was going to make films, did not have hopes to become a politician or a lawyer, so their threats did not have big weight. But for others getting a psychological evaluation and be released on psycho-mental grounds like I did is not an option,” he says. “The other thing is that at this age if you’re not in the military, there’s nothing for you to do,” he adds. “Israel is not a place that values innocence. Our history as persecuted Jews, our enlightened democracy are both in use in our solid PR kit,” Davidi says. “If you challenge these ideas you immediately get accused of antisemitism.”