''Operation Grandma'' (, ''Mivtza Savta'') is a short 1999

Israel Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a country in West Asia. It Borders of Israel, shares borders with Lebanon to the north, Syria to the north-east, Jordan to the east, Egypt to the south-west, and the Mediterranean Sea to the west. Isr ...

i satirical

comedy Comedy is a genre of dramatic works intended to be humorous or amusing by inducing laughter, especially in theatre, film, stand-up comedy, television, radio, books, or any other entertainment medium. Origins Comedy originated in ancient Greec ...

about the military and

kibbutz A kibbutz ( / , ; : kibbutzim / ) is an intentional community in Israel that was traditionally based on agriculture. The first kibbutz, established in 1910, was Degania Alef, Degania. Today, farming has been partly supplanted by other economi ...

life directed by

Dror Shaul Dror Shaul (; born June 28, 1975) is an Israeli filmmaker, commercial director and film writer-director, residing in Tel Aviv, Israel. Biography Shaul was born and raised in the Kibbutz Kissufim where he lived until the age of 22. Shaul was bor ...

. It was filmed on Kibbutz

Yakum Yakum (, lit. "He (The People) shall rise") is a kibbutz in central Israel. Located in the central part of the Israeli coastal plain, about 30 km north of Tel Aviv, and only 5 km from the southern suburbs of Netanya, it falls under the ...

and based on the funeral of Esther Shaul (sister of

Yisrael Galili Yisrael Galili (; 10 February 1911 – 8 February 1986) was an Israeli politician, government minister and member of Knesset. Before Israel's independence in 1948, he served as Chief of Staff of Haganah, the main Zionist political violence, Zion ...

). Esther was Dror's grandmother who was buried in Kibbutz

Kissufim Kissufim () is a kibbutz in the northwestern Negev desert in Israel. Located adjacent to the Gaza Strip at an altitude of 92 meters above sea level, it falls under the jurisdiction of Eshkol Regional Council. In it had a population of . Hist ...

where Shaul was born and raised. The film won the

Ophir Award The Ophir Awards (), full name: the Israel Film Academy Award, sometimes also known as the Israeli Oscars or the Israeli Academy Awards, are film awards for excellence in the Israeli film industry awarded by the Israeli Academy of Film and Tele ...

for Best

Television Drama In film and television show, television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or docudrama, semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humour, humorous in tone. The drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional te ...

. Over the years, it gained significant popularity in Israel and achieved

cult film A cult film, also commonly referred to as a cult classic, is a film that has acquired a cult following. Cult films are known for their dedicated, passionate fanbase, which forms an elaborate subculture, members of which engage in repeated ...

status. The line "You start at your fastest and gradually increase the speed" from the film became famous and is often used humorously in Israel.

Plot

Three very different brothers – Alon (34), a no-nonsense

Israeli Army The Israeli Ground Forces () are the Army, ground forces of the Israel Defense Forces (IDF). The commander is the GOC Army Headquarters, General Officer Commanding with the rank of major general, the ''Mazi'', subordinate to the Chief of the Gen ...

officer; Benni (30), a brilliant

electrician An electrician is a tradesman, tradesperson specializing in electrical wiring of buildings, transmission lines, stationary machines, and related equipment. Electricians may be employed in the installation of new electrical components or the ...

; and Idan (22), a wimpy

field trip A field trip or excursion is a journey by a group of associated peers, such as coworkers or school students, to a place away from their normal environment for the purpose of education or leisure, either within their country or abroad. When ar ...

guide A guide is a person who leads travelers, sportspeople, or tourists through unknown or unfamiliar locations. The term can also be applied to a person who leads others to more abstract goals such as knowledge or wisdom. Travel and recreation Exp ...

– navigate obstacles in an attempt to bury their beloved grandmother in the cemetery of her

, the fictional Asisim. Because Alon has a secret security operation set for that same day, they have to work on a tight schedule, so he plans it like a military operation (hence the title). A series of mistakes and mishaps complicate things.

Cast

Rami Heuberger Rami Heuberger (; born 12 October 1963) is an Israeli actor, comedian and theatre director. Biography Career in the theater After his army service, Heuberger studied acting at Nissan Nativ's acting studio in Tel Aviv. At the end of his studies, ...

as Alon "

Krembo Krembo, also called crembo or creambo (a contraction meaning literally "Cream-in-it" in Hebrew (קרמבו)), is the name of a chocolate-coated marshmallow treat that is popular in Israel. "Krembo whipped snack" consists of a round biscuit base ...

" Sagiv * Ami Smolartchik as Benni Sagiv * Tzach Spitzen as Idan Sagiv *Einat Weitzman as Hagit *

Rozina Cambos Rozina Cambos (; 17 December 1951 – 4 December 2012) was an Israeli actress who distinguished herself as a performer in both Israel and her native Romania. Biography Cambos was born in Bacău to a Romanian-Jewish family. Her father was a stage ...

as Deborah *Hugo Yarden as Sergio *Danielle Miller as Christine *Pablo Salzman as Claudio * Gabriel Troisgros as Patrick * Davida Karol as Haya Sagiv *Eyal Rozales as Gabby *Rotem Abuhab as Shirly *

Efron Etkin Efron Etkin (; 29 December 1952 – 16 January 2012) was an Israeli actor and voice actor. Biography Born in Hatzor, Etkin was born to a family of three children. His father, Zvi Etkin was a member of the Haganah and also taught the Arabic langu ...

as Meir Cohen

Critical reception

The film won a 2000

in the television drama category. ''

Haaretz ''Haaretz'' (; originally ''Ḥadshot Haaretz'' – , , ) is an List of newspapers in Israel, Israeli newspaper. It was founded in 1918, making it the longest running newspaper currently in print in Israel. The paper is published in Hebrew lan ...

'' called it "one of the most successful Israeli comedies ever seen on the small screen", and the film has achieved

status in that country, primarily in Kibbutzs.Amos Harel (4 August 2003)
"Analysis / Hudna intoxication"
''

'' (retrieved 13 November 2012).

References

External links

* * * 1999 films Israeli comedy films 1990s Hebrew-language films Films about the kibbutz Military comedy films Films about the Israel Defense Forces Israeli satirical films 1990s satirical films Films about brothers 1999 comedy films Words and phrases in Modern Hebrew {{1990s-comedy-film-stub