Cemetery Club, The

synopsis

For over two decades, the Mt. Herzl Academy has held its weekly meeting at this cemetery. Seated between the graves of the nation’s dignitaries, they debate the history of modern philosophy, read poetry, eat lunch and determine the fate of the Jewish nation. Director Tali Shemesh has been following the academy for the last 5 years, focusing on two members: Minia, the director’s grandmother, and Lena, her great aunt. The film unravels the jagged, intense, almost impossible relationship between these two extremely different women, who - each bereaved of the man she loved remain bound together by history and Fate. As death decimates the group that has given meaning to their lives, the film explores the conflicts between Lena and Minia, and the family secrets that haunt them. The result is a poignant, intimate, sometimes hilarious portrait of the Holocaust generation like you’ve never seen it before.