(2022, 85 min)
Country: Israel
Director: Nitzan Gilady
Studio: Film Movement/Dekkoo
Language: Hebrew/English
SYNOPSIS: Tel Aviv, present day. Two friends, Guy and Joy, are taking part in the city's LGBTQ+ Pride Parade celebrations. Prepared for a night of hookups, drugs and dancing, their fun is suddenly cut short when a violent shooting sends everyone in the crowd running for safety. In their rush to get home, Guy and Joy pick up Dan, fellow parade attendee, and bring him back to Guy's apartment to wait out the mayhem. A manhunt for the shooter begins outside.
Back in Guy's apartment, however, the three are determined to still have a good time. Still in shock and with plenty of drugs at their disposal, a dark, sex-fueled odyssey begins. As the drugs continue to distort his perception, a paranoid and strung-out Guy discovers the line between intimacy and violence are getting dangerously blurred.
Set over a hallucinatory 24 hours, Nitzan Gilady's erotic second feature takes an unflinching look at party culture with a fast-paced electronic soundtrack by Offer Nissim and immersive cinematography. Starring popular Israeli actors, Israel Ogalbo, Dean Miroshnikov and Moran Rosenblatt, In Bed tackles the highs and lows of recreational drug use and chem-sex within gay communities.
REVIEW:
Lively and colourful, this Israeli drama quickly pivots from happy revelry to dark intrigue, keeping the characters grounded with earthy humour as the suspense grows. Filmmaker Nitzan Gilady skilfully evokes the tactile nature of a summery, shirtless, sexually charged situation that gets increasingly scary. It's a bit meandering and repetitive, and sometimes drifts over the top, but this is a sharply well-made film that keeps the audience gripped.
Partying at Tel Aviv Pride, tattoo artist Guy (Ogalbo) and his best pal Joy (Rosenblatt) run for cover when shots ring out. While watching news coverage, they meet Dan (Miroshnikov), who lost his bag in the confusion. When he's alone, Guy is haunted by memories of a shadowy figure in the street during the incident, so he searches for Dan on a dating app and invites him over. Their strong spark of attraction is complicated by the drugs that make them paranoid. And when Joy turns up in the morning, she's too wasted to help.
With the gunman still at large and stories about continuing incidents, the atmosphere becomes increasingly tense. The film nicely captures the uncertainty and fear rippling through the characters, especially as seen through Guy's substance-fuelled nerves. Events spiral unexpectedly, taking some dark twists and turns. This is accompanied by sexy romantic interaction, both physical and in soul-baring conversations. But the way these young people remain off their heads is clearly going to cause problems.
As Guy, Ogalbo reveals layers of underlying insecurities within a young man who enjoys his aimless life but knows there should be more to it. He has a terrific relaxed chemistry with Rosenblatt, as Joy hints at deeper feelings for Guy before pushing things too far. And Miroshnikov has a strong presence as the enigmatic Dan, who claims to be straight and keeps getting strange phone calls. The question is whether he's dangerous, or if perhaps he simply has his own issues.
This is a contained dramatic thriller with shifting connections between its three central characters. With action mainly limited to Guy's flat, it feel like a stage play. The premise touches on some big topics, from the ubiquity of drugs and sex in the gay scene to the threat of violent bigotry. But it's the edgy relationships that make the film involving, especially Guy's feeling that nobody cares what happens to him. Over one long day and night, these three people take a rather grim odyssey that gets properly unnerving.
-- Reviewed By Rich Kline, Shadows On The Wall (http://www.shadowsonthewall.co.uk/)
