I saw a couple of entertaining films on the plane on my last vacation. Lebanon (2010) tells the story of tank unit from Israel in the first Lebanonese war in 1982. It is a sort of a personal small film that takes place mostly inside the cramped tank-something like Das Boot in a tank. I like how they used the periscope to provide cinematography and once it was damaged it was reflected in the darkened, cracked periscope lens. It seems a little unsatisfying about providing information about the war, but I guess the audience would be well aware of the historical context, but overall I think it pales in comparison with the impressive animated documentary Waltz With Bashir.
I must say I was a little surprised by the overtly positive critical attention given to Ben Afflect's latest starring/directorial feature film The Town. I admit to it being a well made "B" action film with some good performances by Jeremy Renner, Jon Hamm, and Rebecca Hall among others, but it has some of the most preposterous conceits in recent modern film history that I won't go into further. However, it's a perfectly fine film to while away the hours on a plane-it's better not to question the main conceits that drive the action in the film.
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