The House on Chelouche Street

The film tells the story of a family of Egyptian immigrants that settle in 1947 Tel Aviv. The family consists of a widowed wife (played by Gila Almagor, probably the most prominent actress in Israel for the last three decades) and her four children. The plot centers on the firstborn, Sammy, his transition from a shy 15 year old to a working man and an activist in the "Haganah" (a resistance movement that acted mainly against the military forces of the British), and the romantic attachment he develops with a 25 year old Russian immigrant librarian (Michal Bat Adam, now a director). The movie is a vivid and very credible description of Egyptian-Jewish families on the eve of the declaration of the state of Israel.