Based on the stories of the Ethiopian Jews who arrived as refugees in Israel in the 1980s as part of Operation Moses, writer/director Radu Mihaileanu’s film tells the fictionalized story of a Christian child whose mother passes him off as Jewish to save him from the famine. He’s adopted by an Israeli family, and Mihaileanu is at his best in these early years, as nine-year-old Schlomo struggles with life in a new country. But the film goes on for another hour and a half, following Schlomo through high school and into adulthood. He’s portrayed by three actors; Moshe Agazai brings heartbreaking intensity to young Schlomo, and the film never recovers when the others step in. The most affecting scenes occur early, as when Schlomo takes off his new sneakers to walk barefoot the way he did in Africa. By the time this meandering movie reaches Schlomo’s adulthood, you’ll feel you’ve added a few years too.
