Film stereotypes

New Internationalist, June, 2004 by Shlomo Schwartzberg

I support Reem Haddad's decrying of cinematic stereotypes of Arabs (Letter from Lebanon, NI 366) but it should be pointed out that American films shot in Israel are not the same thing as Israeli-made movies. In fact, most Israeli filmmakers depict Israeli Arabs and Palestinians in complex, nuanced and sympathetic ways. That's a distinct contrast to the common antisemitic and stereotypical portrayal of Israelis and Jews in Arab films and television, such as in the recent TV series based on the notorious antisemitic forgery, The Protocols of the Elders of Zion.

Shlomo Schwartzberg Toronto, Canada