A wry sense of the futility of Israel’s attempts at policing its Palestinian population permeates this fact-based debut by writer-directors Vardit Bilu and Dalia Hagar. Among the first features to explore the role of women in the Israeli military, it reveals how the disaffection of so many conscripts poses a threat to national security.
Yet it shies away from deeper political analysis to concentrate on the burgeoning friendship between the meticulous but reluctant Neama Shendar and fellow teen Smadar Sayar, who is more interested in defying her superior than harassing Arabs. Provocatively satirical without resorting to caricature, this is judicious, bold and often disarmingly compassionate.