Hunting Elephants, an Israeli crime comedy, finds three nursing home residents and the grandson of one of them, seeking vengeance for the death of the boy’s father. It opens in Toronto at the Carlton Cinema and Rainbow Cinemas Elgin Mills, Friday June 12.
The film, directed by Reshef Levi, centres around Jonathan (Gil Blank), a bright 12 year-old, who gets picked on by students and teachers alike. His closest friend in the world is his father, Daniel (Zvika Hadar). The two meet up every day at the bank where Daniel works. One day, Daniel is involved in a fatal accident at work and the bank refuses to take responsibility.
Jonathan’s mother leaves him in a nursing home with his grandfather, a bitter and hard old man who never kept in touch with his grandson until that day. At the nursing home, Jonathan meets a host of grumpy old men, including his grandfather Elijah (Sasson Gabai), who along with his friend Nick (Nomi Moshonov), were members of an underground collective called “Lehi” who robbed banks during the British occupation. Joining this rag-tag bunch is Jonathan’s uncle, Lord Michael Simpson (Patrick Stewart), an Englishman and a frustrated Shakespearean actor, who is trying to get his hands on his sister’s inheritance. Jonathan comes up with a crazy plan that will help save his family, while getting even with his father’s former boss: the four of them are going to rob the bank!
Stewart’s role was originally tailored for John Cleese, who had to leave production early due to health reasons. “It was a great honour to be given a role that was written for John Cleese,” says Stewart from a press conference last year. “I have to see how I can make it my own. I always wanted to be funny, now I have a chance.”
Both hilarious and heart-warming, Hunting Elephants is a truly special film that will win over audiences worldwide.
