Yossi & Jagger
Encyclopedia
Yossi & Jagger is a 2002 Israel
i romantic drama film directed by Eytan Fox
about soldiers at the Israel – Lebanon border
who try to find some peace and solace from the daily routine of war.
) commands a company
of soldiers in the snow-covered mountains near Lebanon
. In secrecy, he leads a passionate romantic relationship with his second-in-command officer, Lior (Yehuda Levi
), who is called Jagger by everyone for his rock star-like handsomeness and his lip-syncing Mick Jagger
.
The pair, Yossi and Jagger, lead a loving, yet secret life together, venturing off to be alone and open with one another.
One day, a colonel (Sharon Raginiano) arrives at the base with two female soldiers, one of whom he immediately sleeps with in the bunker. The other one, Yaeli (Aya Koren, credited as Aya Steinovitz), is very interested in Jagger, while she refuses the sexual advances of Ofir (Assi Cohen
), who tries to make clear to her that Jagger is not particularly interested in her.
The colonel is there to supervise a night-time ambush, of which Yossi is resentful because of the full moon, and also because he fears for his soldiers' safety. And indeed Jagger is fatally injured that night, dying in the arms of his lover, who only now is able to articulate his love for him.
At the funeral reception at Jagger's parents' house, Jagger's mother mistakes Yaeli for his girlfriend. She laments that she knew very little about her son, including his favorite song, which only Yossi is able to tell her was "Bo" sung by Rita
. The song was also sung by Ivri Lider
.
but proved to be popular in Israel and got showings on military bases later.
The film ranking website Rotten Tomatoes
reported that 90% of critics gave the film positive reviews, based upon a sample of 40. At Metacritic
, which assigns a normalized
rating out of 100 based on reviews from mainstream critics, the film has received an average
score of 71, based on 20 reviews.
Actor Ohad Knoller won the award for best actor
at the 2003 Tribeca Film Festival
, for his portrayal of Yossi.
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
i romantic drama film directed by Eytan Fox
Eytan Fox
-Biography:Fox was born in New York City and moved with his family to Israel when he was two. His father, Seymour Fox, was a Conservative rabbi and a leading professor of Jewish education at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. His mother, Sara Kaminker-Fox, was the head of the Jerusalem city...
about soldiers at the Israel – Lebanon border
Blue Line (Lebanon)
The Blue Line is a border demarcation between Lebanon and Israel published by the United Nations on 7 June 2000 for the purposes of determining whether Israel had fully withdrawn from Lebanon...
who try to find some peace and solace from the daily routine of war.
Plot
Yossi (Ohad KnollerOhad Knoller
Ohad Knoller is an Israeli actor.Ohad Knoller is the son of journalist Judith Knoller. He is married to actress Noa Raba-Knoller with whom he has a son....
) commands a company
Company (military unit)
A company is a military unit, typically consisting of 80–225 soldiers and usually commanded by a Captain, Major or Commandant. Most companies are formed of three to five platoons although the exact number may vary by country, unit type, and structure...
of soldiers in the snow-covered mountains near Lebanon
Lebanon
Lebanon , officially the Republic of LebanonRepublic of Lebanon is the most common term used by Lebanese government agencies. The term Lebanese Republic, a literal translation of the official Arabic and French names that is not used in today's world. Arabic is the most common language spoken among...
. In secrecy, he leads a passionate romantic relationship with his second-in-command officer, Lior (Yehuda Levi
Yehuda Levi
Yehuda Levi is an Israeli actor and male model. He was born and now lives in Tel Aviv, but spent much of his childhood in South Africa. He attended the "Thelma Yellin" High school, and graduated with excellence. His noticeable breakthrough was in the TV series "Lechayey Ha'ahava" .He is an...
), who is called Jagger by everyone for his rock star-like handsomeness and his lip-syncing Mick Jagger
Mick Jagger
Sir Michael Philip "Mick" Jagger is an English musician, singer and songwriter, best known as the lead vocalist and a founding member of The Rolling Stones....
.
The pair, Yossi and Jagger, lead a loving, yet secret life together, venturing off to be alone and open with one another.
One day, a colonel (Sharon Raginiano) arrives at the base with two female soldiers, one of whom he immediately sleeps with in the bunker. The other one, Yaeli (Aya Koren, credited as Aya Steinovitz), is very interested in Jagger, while she refuses the sexual advances of Ofir (Assi Cohen
Assi Cohen
Asi Cohen is an Israeli comedian and actor. He is best known for his appearances in the feature film Colombian Love , as well as for television performances in Love Hurts , "Rak BeYsrael" with his comedy duo of "Asi and Guri", his role in Mesudarim , and for his...
), who tries to make clear to her that Jagger is not particularly interested in her.
The colonel is there to supervise a night-time ambush, of which Yossi is resentful because of the full moon, and also because he fears for his soldiers' safety. And indeed Jagger is fatally injured that night, dying in the arms of his lover, who only now is able to articulate his love for him.
At the funeral reception at Jagger's parents' house, Jagger's mother mistakes Yaeli for his girlfriend. She laments that she knew very little about her son, including his favorite song, which only Yossi is able to tell her was "Bo" sung by Rita
Rita Kleinstein
Rita Yahan-Farouz is an Iranian-born Israeli pop singer and actress.-Early life:Rita Yahan-Farouz was born in Tehran, Iran. Her family emigrated to Israel in 1970.-Musical and acting career:-1980s:...
. The song was also sung by Ivri Lider
Ivri Lider
Ivri Lider is an Israeli pop rock singer-songwriter. He is one of the biggest-selling contemporary artists in Israeli music, and has won the Male Singer of the Year honor from major Israeli national and local radio stations since entering the Israeli music scene in the late 1990s...
.
Cast
- Ohad KnollerOhad KnollerOhad Knoller is an Israeli actor.Ohad Knoller is the son of journalist Judith Knoller. He is married to actress Noa Raba-Knoller with whom he has a son....
as Yossi - Yehuda LeviYehuda LeviYehuda Levi is an Israeli actor and male model. He was born and now lives in Tel Aviv, but spent much of his childhood in South Africa. He attended the "Thelma Yellin" High school, and graduated with excellence. His noticeable breakthrough was in the TV series "Lechayey Ha'ahava" .He is an...
as Lior Amichai 'Jagger' - Assi CohenAssi CohenAsi Cohen is an Israeli comedian and actor. He is best known for his appearances in the feature film Colombian Love , as well as for television performances in Love Hurts , "Rak BeYsrael" with his comedy duo of "Asi and Guri", his role in Mesudarim , and for his...
as Ophir - Aya Steinovitz as Yaeli
- Hani Furstenberg as Goldie
- Sharon Raginiano as The Colonel
- Yuval SemoYuval SemoYuval Semo is an Israeli actor and comedian. He is well known for acting in the popular Israeli TV show Eretz Nehederet.- Biography :Semo was born in Haifa in 1972. His military service was in the Ordnance Corps. After his military service he worked in the Israel Electric Corporation. He left...
as Psycho - Yaniv Moyal as Samoncha
- Hanan Savyon as Adams
- Erez Kahana as Yaniv the Cook
- Shmulik Bernheimer as Shmuel 'Shmulik' Amichai
- Yael Pearl as Varda Amichai
Reception
The film did not receive production assistance from the Israeli armyIsrael Defense Forces
The Israel Defense Forces , commonly known in Israel by the Hebrew acronym Tzahal , are the military forces of the State of Israel. They consist of the ground forces, air force and navy. It is the sole military wing of the Israeli security forces, and has no civilian jurisdiction within Israel...
but proved to be popular in Israel and got showings on military bases later.
The film ranking website Rotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes is a website devoted to reviews, information, and news of films—widely known as a film review aggregator. Its name derives from the cliché of audiences throwing tomatoes and other vegetables at a poor stage performance...
reported that 90% of critics gave the film positive reviews, based upon a sample of 40. At Metacritic
Metacritic
Metacritic.com is a website that collates reviews of music albums, games, movies, TV shows and DVDs. For each product, a numerical score from each review is obtained and the total is averaged. An excerpt of each review is provided along with a hyperlink to the source. Three colour codes of Green,...
, which assigns a normalized
Standard score
In statistics, a standard score indicates how many standard deviations an observation or datum is above or below the mean. It is a dimensionless quantity derived by subtracting the population mean from an individual raw score and then dividing the difference by the population standard deviation...
rating out of 100 based on reviews from mainstream critics, the film has received an average
Weighted mean
The weighted mean is similar to an arithmetic mean , where instead of each of the data points contributing equally to the final average, some data points contribute more than others...
score of 71, based on 20 reviews.
Actor Ohad Knoller won the award for best actor
Best Actor
Best Actor may refer to:* Academy Award for Best Actor* BAFTA Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role* Best Actor Award * Empire Award for Best Actor* Empire Award for Best British Actor* Filmfare Best Actor Award...
at the 2003 Tribeca Film Festival
Tribeca Film Festival
The Tribeca Film Festival is a film festival founded in 2002 by Jane Rosenthal, Robert De Niro and Craig Hatkoff in a response to the September 11, 2001 attacks on the World Trade Center and the consequent loss of vitality in the TriBeCa neighborhood in Lower Manhattan.The mission of the festival...
, for his portrayal of Yossi.