Snails in the Rain (2013)

Snails in the Rain (2013)


Director: Yariv Mozer
Writers: Yossi Avni Levy (original story), Yariv Mozer
Genre: Drama
Country: Israel
Language: Hebrew
Duration: 82 min
Year: 2013



Stars: Liron Argaman, Yaron Biton, Shak Brenner, Eyal Cohen, Adi Douiev, Itay Gonen

Tel Aviv 1989. Boaz, lijep i zdodan student koji živi sa djevojkom dobija pismo od anonimnog obožavatelja: " Dragi Boaz, ne pitaj me ko sam i kako te znam. Mislim o tebi jako mnogo . Osjećam se nekako posramljeno što sjedim ovdje, za stolom i pišem ovo pismo, ali nemam hrabrosti da bilo šta učinim. Pisaću ti opet."
Boaz u početku misli da je sve to neka greška , ali nakon sledećeg pisma počinje da se pita ko mu šalje ljubavna pisma iz kojih se jasno vidi da je to neko ko ga vidi svaki dan, zna gdje i sa kim živi, gdje studira itd.
Očekujući stipendiju za studiranje hebrejskog jezika svakodnevno provjerava poštu. Pisma koja se ređaju počinju da u njeu bude uspomene na vojničke dane kada je prvi put doživio poljubac od druga i osjetio da ga privlače drugi muškarci. Na ulici primjećuje skrivene poglede, a u svlačionici zgodne i  otvorene momke koji mu se često nabacuju. U njemu raste nemir i ne može da ne razmišljai o sebi ali i o nepoznatom obožavatelju. Njegova djevojka otkriva pisma, ali odluči da prećiti i ne priča sa njim o tome.
Boaz se nalazi u emocionalnom procjepu, svjestan da ga samo tanka nit djeli od spoznaje da u njemu leži duboko potiskivana homoseksualnost koja lako može izaći na površinu.
Kada dobije pismo u kojem ga tajni obožavalac piše da ako i dalje želi da dobija njegova pisma mora tri puta da ugasi i upali svjetlo u kuhinji tačno u 22.00 Boaz se nalazi pred dilemom. Njegova djevojaka saznaje o kome se radi ali odluči da tajnu zadrži za sebe i sačeka Boazovu odluku, kojim putem će da krene.

Izraelski gay filmovi naprosto obiluju homoerotskim scenama, posebno oni koje je režirao Eytan Fox, te se ne možemo oteti utisku da je režiser ovog filma kao uzor za svoje stvaralaštvo uzeo upravo njega.

Inače ovu priču je napisao Yossi Avni-Levy, koji je diplomata i trenutno je Izraelski ambasador u Beogradu.

Mene je podsjetio na jednog druga sa kojim sam studirao. Često sam imao utisak da me gleda ne samo kao prijatelja već i sa nekim posebnim simpatijama. NA žalost ni on , ni ja nismo nikada imali hrabrosti da budemo potpuno iskreni i kažemo šta zaista želimo i osjećamo iako smo često vikendomišli na nudističku plažu na obližnjem otoku, spavali zajedno, šetali goli u ljetnim noćima po stanu i uživali na jedan samo nama dozvoljen način, u tišini bez snage da prekoračimo granicu koja bi nas odvela pravo u zagrljaj jedan drugom.

Film toplo preporučujem da pogledate.

Tel Aviv 1989. Boaz, a 25 years old beautiful student, receives anonymous, male written, obsessive love letters that undermines his sexual identity and interfere his peaceful life with his beloved girlfriend.


He thought it was a mistake. A long white envelope is placed inside his post office box. Only his name appears on it. “Dear Boaz, Don’t ask who I am or how I know you. I think about you a lot. I feel quite embarrassed to sit here at my desk and write you this letter, but I don’t have the courage for much else. I shall write again.” He crumples up the paper. He’s so surprised that he giggles, blushes, checks to make sure no one’s looking. On his way to Tel Aviv University for his linguistics class, he begins to forget about it. When he comes home to his girlfriend, Noa, she’s baking his favorite cake. They’ve been waiting to hear from Jerusalem’s Hebrew University about Boaz’s scholarship.

The year is 1989, when people still waited by their mailboxes. Boaz, 25, is a beautiful and alluring linguistics student. Nearly every day he comes to the post office to find out about his scholarship. But instead he receives anonymous, obsessive love letters. They expose the inner world of their author, a deeply closeted homosexual. Who is the man who has invaded Boaz’s private life? How does he know so much about him? The persistent letters make Boaz extremely sensitive. Every man is a potential suspect—but it is his own heterosexuality that Boaz really doubts. He’s now haunted by memories from his past, unforgettable moments when he felt attracted to other men: Nir, his fellow combat soldier or the German man who slept above him in a European youth hostel. These men manage to disrupt Boaz’s daily life with Noa.

In his fourth letter, the secret admirer gives Boaz an ultimatum. “At precisely 22:00, Thursday, I will be hiding at a position from which I can observe your windows. If you want me to continue writing, you will turn the kitchen lights on and off three times… But if you do not, I will never bother you again. In that case, this letter will be my last.” It’s almost 22:00 and Boaz doesn’t know how to reconcile this difficult decision with Noa and his own emotional turmoil. He also does not know that hours before, Noa had already met the mystery man. She’s known everything all along but kept Boaz’s secrets to herself.