Time With Bashir

Time in “Waltz with Bashir” could be divided in four groups. I will call these groups – layers, who form the whole time of film.

First layer: Year 2006 main character Ari Folman meets his friend from army service period, in a bar and understands he doesn't remember anything from the 1982 Lebanon War. Here is the point where the action begins. Trying to regain his memory, Ari visits several fellows troopers, psychologists and journalist connected with the war. It's not defined how long did the research last, but I presume it was half of the year. One of the first friends Ari Folman visits is Carmi Cna'an, a war-veteran who now lives in the Netherlands. It's winter when the first visit takes place and a summer time when they meet again and Folman remembers the massacre.

Second layer I call time of 1982 Lebanon War. Though the pictures of war are memories, I consider them to be real reflection of 1982 events in Lebanon. Here is the timeline what actually happened during that war:

Third layer is just few episodes in the film, although I think it is important. I call it the time of dreams. To be more precise, it's the surreal dreams of main character. Most of these dreams are closely related with the memories of the war, just they have no certain time. For example dream of getting out of the sea or swimming on the giant naked woman are never defined in the film, but they depict change of the character.

Fourth layer, that makes the general time of the film, is documentary footage. Video represents the aftermath of the Sabra and Shatila massacre, September 1982 by the Lebanese Forces militia group. This footage is disgusting and outrageous, showing a screaming woman. She shouts "My son, my son" in Arabic, but her words are not subtitled, like it's not irrelevant. This real time footage provoke lots of discussion about depiction of Palestinians in “Waltz with Bashir”. Naira Antoun claims that “they have no names, they don't speak, they are anonymous.” and ”being blown to pieces or lying dead”.

Generally, time in “Waltz with Bashir” is a mosaic of real and unreal, datable and unnameable. Like the genre of the film is contrasting – animation – the soil for illustrating surreal and imaginable things and documentary – pure life.

Sources: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sabra_and_Shatila

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/819200.stm

http://www.jewishsearch.com/article_899.html

http://electronicintifada.net/v2/article10322.shtml