André Demester leaves his farm in northern France to become a soldier in a far off land. On his last night of freedom he witnesses Barbe, his childhood friend and secret love, sleeping with another man. A twist of fate puts the two men side by side in combat where their undeclared personal war and the one they are fighting tragically merge. Left behind, Barbe, alone and wasting away, faces misfortunes of her own, while awaiting the soldiers return....

From Israel's most important filmaker, Carmel is Amos Gitai's (Kadosh, Kippur) deeply personal and resonant meditation on Jewish and Israeli identity. Using both fiction and documentary techniques, Gitai links his family history to ancient history. Through exquisitely composed long takes, he re-enacts the Jewish-Roman wars that began in 66 A.D. , and contrasts them to the young soldiers enlisting in Israel's army today, including his own son, making...