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Yossi & Jagger Movie Review

Yossi & Jagger is a 2002 Israeli romantic drama film directed by Eytan Fox and starring Ohad Knoller and Yehuda Levi. It’s such a heartbreaking movie.

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“What can I say?

I’m an animal“

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It is about a gay romance between two soldiers stationed in an Israeli outpost on the Lebanese border. This is a very simple film that mostly works despite its obvious simplicity. That’s because the romance at the center of it is so powerful and so perfectly developed that the third act was definitely heartfelt. The last scene was particularly heartbreaking. It’s a testament to the power of this film that it manages to make an emotional impact on the viewer despite its short length.

Yes, that length was a problem. The movie should have been longer and more epic, but that shortness did admittedly lead to a concise structure and brisk pacing. My main issue with the story is the inclusion of girls in it. That whole drama with Yaeli felt unimportant and unnecessary. It only distracted from a bigger, more important story going on. It was also clichéd, though the female characters themselves are charming.

Ophir is also quite memorable and the overall group dynamic between the men is great and fun. But this is naturally all about Yossi and Lior (called Jagger due to his great looks). Their romance is deeply touching, so well portrayed and perfectly acted. Yehuda Levi is very good himself, but Ohad Knoller is fantastic. You can feel his frustration as well as his pain. Their moments together are so sweet that the movie would have benefited from including more of those scenes instead of the unnecessary, forced love triangle.

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Yossi & Jagger was accused by some for being cheap. Certainly, the movie does not look great in terms of cinematography as it was clearly shot on a shoestring budget. However, there were some scenes with the snow in particular that felt immensely artistic and also inspired. The direction from Eytan Fox is also excellent and the dialogue is quite strong. The movie overall is minimalist for better and for worse, but hugely emotionally rewarding when it mattered most.

Although perhaps minimalist to a fault, especially in its ridiculously short runtime, Yossi & Jagger developed its central romance so well that the final act was deeply heartfelt as a result. The direction is strong, the movie is very sweet in a couple of scenes and the acting is excellent with Ohad Knoller in particular delivering stellar work.

My Rating – 4