''The Human Resources Manager'' (, translit. ''Shliḥuto shel Ha'Memuneh al Mash'abey Enosh'') is a 2010 Israeli
drama film
In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. The drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular ...
directed by
Eran Riklis
Eran Riklis (; born October 2, 1954) is an Israeli filmmaker. His films include Cup Final (film), ''Cup Final'' (1991), ''The Syrian Bride'' (2004), Lemon Tree (2008 film), ''Lemon Tree'' (2008) and ''Dancing Arabs'' (also known as ''A Borrowed I ...
. Its script was written by
Noah Stollman
Noah Stollman (; born September 29, 1966) is an Israeli screenwriter and TV producer.A. B. Yehoshua. The film tells the story of a bakery's human-resources manager (unnamed, like most of the film's characters) who reluctantly travels to
Eastern Europe
Eastern Europe is a subregion of the Europe, European continent. As a largely ambiguous term, it has a wide range of geopolitical, geographical, ethnic, cultural and socio-economic connotations. Its eastern boundary is marked by the Ural Mountain ...
to bring the body of a deceased former employee, a recent immigrant to Israel, back to her family, in order to prevent a public-relations disaster for his company. The first half of the film is set in, and was filmed in,
Jerusalem
Jerusalem is a city in the Southern Levant, on a plateau in the Judaean Mountains between the Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean and the Dead Sea. It is one of the List of oldest continuously inhabited cities, oldest cities in the world, and ...
, while the second half was filmed in
Romania
Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern and Southeast Europe. It borders Ukraine to the north and east, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Bulgaria to the south, Moldova to ...
, although the name of the country is never specified in the film.
Plot
Yulia, a foreign worker from Eastern Europe who came to work in Israel, is murdered in a terrorist attack in Jerusalem. Her body remains unclaimed in the morgue. Based on her belongings, it becomes clear that she worked at a Jerusalem bakery (Berman's Bakery), and a journalist from a local Jerusalem newspaper (played by Guri Alfi) accuses the bakery of being indifferent to her fate. The owner of the bakery (Gila Almagor), known as "The Widow," instructs the human resources manager (Mark Ivanir) to take the deceased back to her homeland for burial.
The film follows the journey of the human resources manager from Jerusalem to the deceased's hometown, until she is laid to rest. He is accompanied by the journalist, and in the destination country in Romania, they are joined by the deputy Israeli consul (Julian Negulesco), who is married to the consul (Rozina Cambos), and Yulia's young son (Noah Silver).
The film's plot faithfully mirrors that of the book. The main significant difference between the two is that in the book, the owner of the bakery is a man, "The Old Man," whereas in the film, it is a woman, "The Widow."
Gila Almagor
Gila Almagor Agmon (; born Gila Alexandrowitz; July 22, 1939) is an Israeli actress, film star, and author. In Israel, she is known as "queen of the Israeli cinema and theatre".
Biography
Gila Alexandrowitz (Almagor) was born in Petah Tikva to Je ...
Guri Alfi
Guri Alfi-Aharon (; born 18 September 1976) is an Israeli actor, director, screenwriter, producer, stand-up comedian, voice actor, comedian and television host.
Biography
Alfi was born, raised and educated in Ramat Gan. He is the son of the w ...
as The Weasel
*
Irina Petrescu
Irina Carmen Petrescu (19 June 1941 – 19 March 2013) was a Romanian film actress. She appeared in 29 films between 1959 and 2010. She won the award for Best Actress at the 6th Moscow International Film Festival for her role in the 1969 fil ...
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 ...
Locarno International Film Festival
The Locarno International Film Festival is a major international film festival, held annually in Locarno, Switzerland. Founded in 1946, the festival screens films in various competitive and non-competitive sections, including feature-length narr ...
Ha'aretz
''Haaretz'' (; originally ''Ḥadshot Haaretz'' – , , ) is an Israeli newspaper. It was founded in 1918, making it the longest running newspaper currently in print in Israel. The paper is published in Hebrew and English in the Berliner fo ...
'', August 14, 2010
It also won five
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 ...
s, for Best Film, Director, Screenplay, Supporting Actress (
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 ...
) and Soundtrack.
The film was also selected as the Israeli entry for the
Best Foreign Language Film
The following is a list of categories of awards commonly awarded through organizations that bestow film awards, including those presented by various films, festivals, and people's awards.
Best Actor/Best Actress
*See Best Actor#Film awards, Bes ...
at the
83rd Academy Awards
The 83rd Academy Awards ceremony, organized by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS), honored the best films of 2010 in the United States and took place on February 27, 2011, at the Kodak Theatre in Hollywood, Los Angeles, be ...