''Not Quite Paradise'' is a 1985 British comedy-drama directed by

Lewis Gilbert Lewis Gilbert (6 March 1920 – 23 February 2018) was an English film director, producer and screenwriter who directed more than 40 films during six decades; among them such varied titles as ''Reach for the Sky'' (1956), ''Sink the Bismarck!'' ...

. It was originally released in Europe under the title ''Not Quite Jerusalem'', adapted by Paul Kember from his 1982 play of the same name. It was filmed on two kibbutzim, Eilot and Grofit, as well as at the

Mikveh Israel Mikveh Israel ( he, מִקְוֵה יִשְׂרָאֵל, 'Hope of Israel') is a youth village and boarding school in the Tel Aviv District of central Israel, established in 1870. It was the first Jewish agricultural school in what is now Isra ...

Agricultural School.

Plot

Six naive British and American

volunteers Volunteering is a voluntary act of an individual or group freely giving time and labor for community service. Many volunteers are specifically trained in the areas they work, such as medicine, education, or emergency rescue. Others serve ...

arrive on kibbutz Kfar Ezra for a working holiday, exchanging their labour for the opportunity to experience first-hand its unique collective lifestyle. When Mike (

Sam Robards Samuel Prideaux Robards (born December 16, 1961) is an American actor, best known for his role as Henry Swinton in the film ''A.I. Artificial Intelligence''. Early life and education Robards was born in New York City, the son of actor Jason Roba ...

), a young

medical student A medical school is a tertiary educational institution, or part of such an institution, that teaches medicine, and awards a professional degree for physicians. Such medical degrees include the Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery (MBBS, MB ...

, falls in love with Gila (

Joanna Pacuła Joanna Pacuła (; born 30 December 1957) is a Polish-American actress and model. Born in Tomaszów Lubelski and emigrating to the United States in the early 1980s, she first gained prominence through her modeling work for Vogue. Her breakthro ...

), the Israeli girl who is organising the volunteers' work and accommodation, he must choose between a life with her and returning home.

Cast

Critical reception

''Not Quite Paradise'' received very poor reviews. Nina Darnton of ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...

'' panned the film as "an example of a good idea spoiled by a hackneyed, heavy-handed script, awkward directorial pacing, and posed acting... The script, while trying to humorously characterize national stereotypes, succeeds only in being insulting." Joe Baltake of

Philly.com ''The Philadelphia Inquirer'' is a daily newspaper headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The newspaper's circulation is the largest in both the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the Delaware Valley metropolitan region of Southeastern Pennsy ...

called it "annoyingly schizophrenic – thuddingly humorless when it isn't shockingly offensive." In a savage review in the ''

Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the U ...

'', Patrick Goldstein argued that an "awkward" and "uneven" script, "a paucity of intriguing characters", and an overwrought soundtrack of quivering violins "delivers a dreary, cliché-ridden film with all the wallop of a sheaf of crumbling parchment paper." London's '' Time Out'' contrasted the "strong material" in Paul Kember's original play to this melodramatic, "caramelized" screen version: "Gilbert has created a toffee-apple with the apple removed: bite through the sweet crust of romantic Holy Land locations, handsome Israelis, dashing Arab terrorists and corny jokes, and what remains is sheer emptiness." ''

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'' was equally dismissive, noting, "the world of an Israeli kibbutz is reduced to a few simple-minded cinematic clichés... no different from a boarding school or overnight camp. The only really indigenous thing to be found here is the beautifully photographed Israeli scenery, which borders on travelog material rather than background setting."

References

External links

* * * * * {{Lewis Gilbert 1985 films Films about the kibbutz Films directed by Lewis Gilbert British films based on plays British comedy-drama films Films shot in Israel New World Pictures films 1980s English-language films 1980s British films