Israeli War Film "Lebanon" Wins Best Pic in Venice with Universal Anti-War Message

The tank is anthropomorphized in director Samuel Maoz’s “Lebanon”, which won the Golden Lion for best picture at the Venice film festival on Saturday.

Director Samuel Maoz shot almost the entire drama, featuring graphic and disturbing scenes of violence, from inside a tank to communicate the claustrophobia and fear he experienced as a young Israeli conscript during the 1982 war.

Scene from “Lebanon”, Samuel Maoz’s Venice Film Festival 2009 top filmListen as Maoz talks about the greater meaning and making of “Lebanon” from a cinematic perspective.

Ang Lee, president of the jury and two-time Golden Lion winner, told reporters:

“We all come from different countries but we are happy that we are not inside that tank. It could be any tank and any war in the world, that’s what is so precious about the film.

66th Venice Film Festival Winner “Lebanon”