Broken Wings
An uncommonly powerful film,Broken Wingscaptures a family in  mid-disintegration: A midwife at an Israeli hospital struggles to hold her  children together in the wake of their father's death. Maya, a gaunt, pale  young woman, aspires to win a band contest; Ido, a boy bullied at school,  tries to film himself jumping from heights; Yair, a teenage boy, wallows  in the meaninglessness of existence as he hands out flyers, dressed in a  mouse costume. This may sound tedious or excruciating, but it's given  vivid life by an incredible cast and a humor that manages to be absurd and  a little sad at the same time. The movie embraces its characters with a  profound empathy; it's hard to imagine that anyone could watchBroken  Wingsand not be deeply moved by the end. Not surprisingly, the movie  has won numerous awards at film festivals around the world.--Bret  Fetzer