My Thoughts On Late Summer Blues

This has been an incredible past week in Eretz Yisrael. We celebrated the freedom and creation of our Jewish state (Yom HaAtzmaut), and mourned for our losses during the Holocaust (Yom HaZikaron). This week was filled with all kinds of emotions and feelings that are difficult to explain, which is why I really want to focus on the movie that NFTY-EIE watched the other day -- called "Late Summer Blues." The movie is about a group of eighteen year-olds living in Israel and are preparing to join the army. The most interesting part about the movie is the fact that it takes place after the Six-Day War and during the War of Attrition. The young men and women entering the IDF at this time were incredibly nervous and even rebellious regarding the wars. The movie struggles with the different opinions that many teenagers faced before entering the army -- and without a doubt kept my attention the entire time.

I absolutely LOVED this movie. I related to a lot of the characters in the film because they all reflected different feelings that I've had in the past while thinking about moving to Israel and joining the IDF. I mostly related to the character Mossi and Tsvillich (A.K.A Joe). I related to Mossi because during the movie he has trouble with deciding what he wants to do in the IDF. Mossi falls in love with Margo and she tries to get him to join a band that performs for the rest of the IDF soldiers, but Mossi is considered an A-1 (which means he is very healthy and could be a good infantry soldier) so it is hard for him to get out of being an infantry soldier. Mossi eventually gets permission to join the army band, but he feels that he should be serving as an infantry soldier during a time when they really need it. This sort of struggle is something that I often deal with concerning what I want to do in the IDF (if I'm able to join). As for Tsvillich, he is more of a guy who just goes with the flow. He doesn't complain about the required service like his other friends do. For me, it feels like joining the IDF and moving to Israel is a necessity. I don't question why I should do it, I just know that I should. That is why I connect with him in such an interesting way.

"Late Summer Blues" was an awesome movie that I recommend to anyone who is interested in a really cool perspective on joining the IDF that most people will never experience themselves. It is in Hebrew but you can easily find it with English subtitles. Check it out!