The Montana Movie; An Indirect Endorsement for Female Homosexuality

Faraan Zionist Research Base; Montana is a 2017 Israeli film directed by Limor Shmila. Other cinematic works of this filmmaker include the film “Time to Go” produced in 2016. Shmila, who wrote the screenplay, portrayed the emotional and sexual connection between the two women in the heart of the work. The 79-minute film was shot in the Occupied Territories and its main language is Hebrew.

Synopsis
The story begins when the protagonist of the film, Efi, loses her grandfather and returns to her hometown of Acco after living outside the occupied territories for 15 years. During the film, there is no specific explanation about the past of “Efi” and her history.

As soon as she returns to her hometown, Efi meets her grandmother, aunt and uncle, and then meets a neighbor of her grandfather’s house, a young woman named Keren. Keren is married and has a young daughter named “Maya” who she lives together with.

Keren and Efi’s relationship gradually becomes so intimate that Efi decides to spend more time in Acco and with Keren; This over-intimacy causes Efi to become addicted to Keren, and their emotional relationships are replaced by unusual sexual relationships.

As time goes on and the two women deepen their relationship, Efi realizes that Maya, Keren’s nine-year-old daughter, is on suspicious and secret visits to the house of ‘Yossi’ (Efi’s uncle); Efi discusses this with Keren, but it’s hard for Keren to believe, and it cools the relationship between Keren and Efi.

The main theme of the film
Although the story points to the immorality and dangerousness of a man’s relationship with a nine-year-old girl, the director addresses “female homosexuality” at the heart of the film. While portraying the relationship of the man with a young girl as a social problem, the film portrays the relationship between the two women as normal and unproblematic.

Awards
The Montana film premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival and has since been screened at the following festivals:
Nominated for the Ophir Award, Israel’s most important film award for Best Supporting Actress.

Nominated for the Ophir Award for Best Director
“Noa Biron”, actor in the role of Efi: Winner of Best Actor at the “Haifa International Film Festival”.
Screening of the film at the Toronto Film Festival and the nomination of the film in two different categories for the Ophir Award show the importance of homosexual films for Western and Israeli cinema.

Sources:
https://www.rogerebert.com/festivals-and-awards/tiff-2017-montana-kissing-candice-waru