Exodus (film)

Exodus (Exodus) is a 1960 American film based on the 1958 novel of the same name, written by Leon Uris, which deals with the founding of the State of Israel in 1948.

The film was produced and directed by Otto Preminger, starring Paul Newman, Eva Marie Saint, Ralph Richardson, Peter Lawford, Lee J. Cobb, Sal Mineo, John Derek, Hugh Griffith, Gregory Ratoff, Felix Aylmer, David Opatoshu, Jill Haworth, and Marius Goring.

Plot

Israeli resistance commander Ari Ben Canaan (Paul Newman) manages to get 300 Jewish refugees out of refugee camps in Cyprus and into a merchant ship bound for Palestine, bypassing the legal blockade imposed by the British authorities, which they discover his plan and urge him to abandon it. Undeterred, Ari and his compatriots refuse to surrender, risking their lives for their cause: the creation of the State of Israel.

Cast

• Paul Newman: Ari Ben Canaan
• Eva Marie Saint: Kitty Fremont.
• Ralph Richardson: General Sutherland.
• Peter Lawford: Major Caldwell.
• Lee J. Cobb: Barak Ben Canaan.
• Sal Mineo: Dov Landau.
• John Derek: Taha.
• Hugh Griffith: Mandria.
• Gregory Ratoff: Lakavitch.
• Felix Aylmer: Dr. Lieberman.
• David Opatoshu: Akiva Ben-Canaan.
• Jill Haworth: Karen Hansen Clement.
• Marius Goring: Von Storch.
• Alexandra Stewart: Jordana Ben Canaan.
• Michael Wager: David.
• Martin Benson: Mordekai.
• Paul Stevens: Reuben.
• Victor Maddern: British Sergeant.
• George Maharis: Yoav.

Historical accuracy

Leon Uris's book, on which Otto Preminger's film is based, is loosely inspired by the historical origins of the Arab-Israeli conflict. In both cases, the authors have altered the facts both in favor of the narrative and their political positions. The film shows the ship "Star of David" intercepted in the vicinity of Palestine whose passengers, Jews, are sent to a refugee camp in Cyprus. Haganah captain Ari Ben Canaan (played by Paul Newman) manages to charter another ship, the "Exodus" of the title, to rescue these immigrants and take them to Palestine, where they arrive on the eve of the implementation of the Partition Plan.

In reality the ship "Exodus" She was intercepted in 1947 near Haifa by the British authorities and her passengers sent to Port-de-Bouc (France), from where they returned to the deportation camps in Germany. It was not until 1948, after the creation of the State of Israel, that some of these refugees could reach Palestine.

The King David Hotel bombing took place before these events, in July 1946 and not in 1947 as shown in the film. In fact, this was the cause of the Haganah withdrawing, in protest, from the "Jewish Rebellion Movement" that he shared with the Irgún and the Leji. Likewise, the attack on the Acre prison, in May 1947 and before the "Exodus" affair, was an exclusive operation of the Irgun.

In the film, the attempt to take Safed is shown as an Arab attack on the city, but the city had already been taken by Jewish forces in May 1947 and the local Arab population expelled.

According to historian Larry Portis, the main historical criticism that can be made of the film is to present only one side of the conflict; Haganah soldiers appear as a few brave and poorly armed men defending a kibbutz against fanatical Arabs and framed by ex-Nazi soldiers.

Awards

• Oscar Prize 1961: to the best music for film (Ernest Gold).
• Golden Globe Award 1961: the best secondary actor (Sal Mineo).
• Grammy Award 1961: to the best music for film (Ernest Gold).
• Laurel Gold Prize 1961: the most outstanding secondary male performance (Sal Mineo).

The dubbing of the time in Spain

In the Spanish version of the film, you can see the censorship when translated from the English original, with a total change in some scenes. The most notorious is when Dov Landau is interrogated by the Irgun. With this censorship, the Franco regime tried to hide the Nazi crimes against the Jews.^{[citation needed]}