From Jane’s Walks in Haifa to Israel’s Biggest Food Festival: Weekend Picks
A movie in which survival on an island becomes a funny, laid-back horror film
What is it about works featuring people on islands? Put characters on a deserted island that looks like a paradise from dreams, and you know it will end like a nightmare. Now there is a cluster of works dealing with the same theme in different ways, from the excellent television adaptation of "Lord of the Flies" to Ron Howard’s terrible and awful film, "Eden," which opens in Israel today and is based on a true story that took place in the Galápagos Islands. In between is "Save Yourselves!," Sam Raimi’s funny and entertaining horror-comedy, which briefly played in theaters and is now available on Disney+, and is almost a parody of the "Lord of the Flies" motif and of the Darwinian ideas associated with the Galápagos Islands.
In "Save Yourselves!," Rachel McAdams plays a worker bee at a tech company who is obsessed with "Survivor." When a work trip leaves her stranded on a deserted island with her toxic boss (Dylan O’Brien), it turns out he is useless outside the boardroom, while she is a born hunter, and the balance of power between them is reversed. Now he depends on her. Raimi, who made "Evil Dead" in the 1980s and "Spider-Man" in the 2000s, is a pioneering creator of violent, bloody horror films that are also funny and sarcastic. What the other works present with complete seriousness, and with an intention to be an important parable about a society collapsing into chaos, nihilism and violence, Raimi does with casual humor.
A perfect weekend for foodies
Two worthwhile culinary events are taking place this weekend, one in Haifa and the other in Tel Aviv. The small artisanal producers market Glm is expanding and, for the first time, is extending an exploratory arm to Haifa. May Serry, the culinary entrepreneur behind the market, is bringing a lineup of quality northern producers on Saturday to the roof of Talpiot (Sirkin 21). Participants include Dir Blach dairy; Uri Hets and Naama Surkin, the couple behind the northern co-op in Merom Golan, among the best wine and cider producers in Israel; excellent spirits from the Alchemist, do not miss the slivovitz; charcuterie sausages of a level we had until now only encountered in European markets, from "Dan Charcuterie"; biodynamic wines from Harashim Winery; Naama Sternlicht’s tonic; organic vegetables from Gorodetzky Farm; and wasabi from the Golan Heights. Ahead of Shavuot, Glm is also offering holiday packages that can be ordered through the project’s Instagram page.
In Tel Aviv, the tenth annual edition of the country’s biggest food festival, "Tel Aviv Eat," is taking place, with the biggest names in the field: Israel Aharoni, Haim Cohen, Moshik Roth, Assaf Granit, Shaul Ben Aderet, Guy Gamzo and many others. Tonight you can catch the tail end of the event at Charles Clore Park, between 6:00 p.m. and 11:00 p.m.
Advanced urban Haifa
Every year, at the beginning of May, "Jane’s Walks" are held in about 200 cities around the world, urban walking tours inspired by Jane Jacobs, one of the most influential thinkers in city planning. In the tours, residents lead walks through streets they know well, sharing stories, local history and personal insights about the space. The idea reflects Jacobs’ view that the city belongs to its residents, and they are its true experts. It is a completely volunteer-based initiative, and anyone can sign up as a guide. This weekend the walks will take place in Haifa, with more than 40 tours.
"We always take the situation into account, and this year too there will be walks that respond to the wartime reality," says organizer Ora Gazit. "Among other things, there will be a tour following the street art of Inbar Haiman, who was murdered and abducted from the Nova festival. Inbar was a student in Haifa and left graffiti throughout the city. There is also a tour at sites where missiles fell."
Also planned are a tour following books set in Haifa, such as Sami Michael’s "Trumpet in the Wadi," and an architectural tour in the Bauhaus style. "There is no approved program and everyone gives a tour as they see fit," she adds. "I myself am leading a tour of wall art created in the mid-20th century, socialist art with messages in public space."
Make IKEA into an art of wandering
In "Hosting Life," Yael Yudkovik’s new exhibition at Gallery 3 in Jaffa (Hatzorfim 15), the magic of her work in recent years continues. Yudkovik, an installation, sculpture and drawing artist, manages to breathe new, poetic and secret life into everyday objects thrown out into the street, including familiar items from IKEA. She collects them in her home or studio and turns them into works of art through surprising minimalist connections and polished interventions that are almost imperceptible. Yudkovik creates fascinating, disturbing and sometimes amusing hybrid objects from them. For example, a bar chair becomes a pure, abstract modernist sculpture balanced on silvered glasses.
The objects sometimes resemble bodily poses, body parts and architectural structures, and many of them are laid on the floor and imitate human states of surrender, alienation and various accidents. Thus, paper balls are revealed to be covered with maps of the land partly erased by doodles, doll hands purchased in Austria move across a wooden board, and the sensual vaults of the doors of an old wooden cabinet are laid on their sides as a kind of shelter for a body lying in the center of the gallery.
Elegant, relaxed Shavuot shopping
Alongside white items for the holiday, it is also worth making room for natural linen tones, cream, sand and light stone, as well as spring floral prints. They have quiet elegance, less effort and more character. A clean-cut dress, or a combination of wide trousers and a shirt, will provide exactly the right balance between festive and relaxed. At designer Sabina Musayeva, there are plenty of chic options that will stand out in a good way.
Musayeva founded the brand in 2011 with her partner Meir Moial, and draws inspiration from an ethnic aesthetic that she translates into contemporary, feminine and soft collections. She does not chase seasonal trends, and her collections offer sophisticated casual wear alongside a more glamorous look, pieces that will work both on vacation and at a summer event. For example, a shirt and skirt or a relaxed floral chiffon maxi dress from the brand’s Blossom line, or a boho-chic set of ivory embroidered cotton pants with a matching vest or button-down shirt.
TV, "Missing" is a gripping and well-made British drama
Michael is the headmaster of an elite school and a tough rugby coach, whose wife Sarah, a music teacher, disappears one day without warning. His reaction to the event is strange, it is not clear whether it indicates guilt, emotional numbness, or simply a man fleeing bad news.
In "Missing" ("Gone"), a six-episode British drama airing on HOT and yes, information about the headmaster and family man (David Morrissey, "The Walking Dead") is given through the eyes of detective Annie (Eve Myles, "Broadchurch"), who is assigned to accompany the father, his adult daughter and the rest of the family. Along the way, she tries to uncover how much is hidden beneath the surface in this investigation.
Annie also has an unresolved disappearance in her past, and she has relationship problems too, all of which affect her as the investigation progresses, with every troubling detail revealed before her, Annie steps beyond her official role as the family liaison officer. She delves into the lives of the couple and discovers a world of secrets, tensions and lies, and things about herself as well. The series, which is oppressive but also gripping, was written and created by BAFTA-nominated George Kay ("Lupin") and is inspired by the book "To Hunt A Killer," based on true events.
