ROCK THE CASBAH/ROCK BA-CASBA.

Israel, 2012, 93 minutes, Colour.
Yon Tumarkin, Roy Nick, Henry David.
Directed by Yariv Horowitz.

Rock the Casbah is an Israeli film of 2012, set in 1989 with young men, Israeli conscripts, sent on service to Palestinian towns in Gaza to patrol and keep order.

The audience goes into Palestine with these young men, travelling with them on the bus, their alighting in the desert, the setup with the tents, the communal showers, meals, a military lifestyle. The question is raised for audiences as to how much training they received, enabling them to do their job, to keep calm in themselves despite young men and children throwing stones and firebombs at them, and not to respond angrily whatever the provocation.

The provocation comes fairly quickly as stones are hurled at these young men, often by young children, but there are more serious attacks with Molotov cocktails, the pushing of a washing machine from the top of the roof and its killing one of the young soldiers, a particularly angry young man. The commander orders the young men to keep vigil on the roof of the house from which the washing machine was thrown. This is a huge burden for the family, the father who continually protests, the mother who is caring for her children and is defiant of the young soldiers. They are considered by the people in the village as collaborators.

The film focuses on one young man in particular, Tomer, who has been friendly to the children, plays with the young child of the house who continually plays guns and ‘Hands up!’. It becomes very difficult later in the film when the child actually has a grenade and has to be talked down.

The film highlights the personalities of the young men, their vigils on the roof, the clashes with each other, the tensions, wanting to get out of the house – and even going to eat hummus in a local cafe much to the anger of their commander when he finds them, calling them spoiled brats, as well as the suspicions of the Palestinians watching.

A crisis comes when the young man sees the killer and there is a pursuit. Tomer is under pressure, has tried to see a psychologist who promises to see him but is missing when he goes to her door, has experienced the frustration of the mission to keep order, has repressed his anger and, although he is a believer in peace, his anger overcomes him.

Films like this are important for Israelis and Palestinians, this film being funded by Israel. And they are important for audiences worldwide to get a feeling of the occupation by seeing them.


1. An Israeli film of the 21st century about the 20th century? Israel, Gaza, Israelis, Arabs, occupation, soldiers on guard?

2. The title? The reference to the song, the use of songs of the period? The musical score?

3. The impact for Israeli audiences, the Palestinian audiences, world audiences? A contribution to understanding, to peace?

4. The settings, young troops going to Gaza, in the bus, listening to the radio, 18 year-olds, together, out of the bus, the terrian, the desert, the villages, the old buildings, the ordinariness and poverty?

5. The limitations of life for the Palestinians? The Israeli military presence? Their homes, cafes, possessions?

6. The reaction of the young, the children throwing stones, the older young men, stones, Molotov cocktails? The reaction of the young soldiers? Hostility, anger?

7. Patrols, the behaviour of the young men, daring, angry, pursuing the young Palestinians? The washing machine thrown from the roof? The death of Ilya?

8. The occupation of the house, the concern of the father, seen as a collaborator, the mother of the children, the defiance? The little boy and his playing, hands up? The grenade?

9. The audience entering with the group, understanding National Service, conscription, the effect on the young men at this stage of their life? The issue of how much training? Their quarters, the tents, showers, the meals, the military conditions, the effect on them?

10. The various personalities, the details of the duties, friendliness with the young boy, a game of Hands Up? The soldiers playing or not? The children following on the streets? Tomer and his relationship with the children, friendliness? The various squads, their supervisor, the attacks, the two lots of bullets, rubber and real? Ilya and his anger, the attack and his death? Tomer seeing the man who did it?

11. The role of the young commander, older than these young men, his orders, thinking them spoiled brats? The incident in their going to the cafe for hummus, his ordering them out? The wariness of the waiter, of the men in the cafe?

12. The men stationed on the roof, perpetual vigilance, there being lax, the interactions, the games, the seriousness, anger?

13. The focus on Tomer, a pleasant young man, with children, doing his job, on the roof, watching, witnessing the death? The difficulty in identifying the killer? The interview with the shrink? His later going, talking, going to the commander? Her not being there on his return? The commanders, the tension, seeing the killer, the pursuit, the ideological pressure, psychological pressure, shooting the man dead?

14. The role of the constant conscripts, military, Palestine in the 20th century? In the 21st?

15. The effect on Israelis, and on Israel and its policies?