The Gatekeepers

Dror Moreh is a little known filmmaker whose debut feature on Israeli statesman Ariel Sharon made negligible impact, but with the release of The Gatekeepers, he is set to become a big name in the world of documentaries.

The film is a wince-inducing exposé of six former heads of the Shin Bet, a secretive Israeli internal security force that wasn’t as subtle or internal as it should have been. The film’s real power comes from the level of detail and depth of feeling that Moreh is able to draw from his subjects. This is even more impressive when one considers that these people were or remain close to the top of Israel’s political elite. While the former Shin Bet heads muse on subjects such as the morality of torture and the philosophy of offence as defence, they are complemented by Moreh’s expertly chosen footage and graphics.

Revelatory in many ways, The Gatekeepers exposes the events that helped create the current situation in Israel and Palestine and, perhaps even more shockingly those responsible for the deaths of innumerable people. It seems that by speaking to Moreh, his subjects finally come to terms with the consequences of their decisions about targeted killings, assassinations and more. These men used extraordinarily violent means to achieve their goal: the invisible protection of Israel.

The Gatekeepers combines brilliant journalistic interviews, truly shocking archive footage and innovative graphical flourishes. One should not be put off by the subject matter; it is neither as gloomy nor as arcane as it may sound. This is a documentary that should not be missed.

            Joey Godman

The Gatekeepers is released in selected cinemas on 12^th April 2013.

Watch the trailer for The Gatekeepers here: