Waltz with Bashir
Animated documentary about recovering suppressed memories from the Lebanon War
The brief
Folman's animated memoir starts as a mystery about lost memories and slowly transforms into something much heavier, using dreamlike rotoscoped animation that makes traumatic recollections feel both surreal and brutally real. The pacing is hypnotic and deliberate, building psychological tension as fragments of the Lebanon War surface through interviews with fellow veterans. What begins feeling like a personal therapy session becomes an unforgettable meditation on how we process collective trauma and responsibility. Perfect for anyone drawn to Charlie Kaufman's introspective style or films that use unconventional storytelling to tackle serious subject matter.
The verdict
If you're drawn to unconventional storytelling that uses animation to explore serious psychological and political themes, this dreamlike meditation on war trauma and memory is essential viewing. If you prefer straightforward narratives or avoid heavy subject matter about war and collective guilt, the deliberate pacing and weighty themes will likely feel too slow and somber.
Watch with
- 👤 Solo viewing for deep contemplation
- 👫 Adults interested in serious war films
- ⚠️ Not suitable for children
- ⚠️ May be triggering for veterans
Heads up
- War violence and civilian casualties (moderate)
- Disturbing wartime imagery (moderate)
- Discussion of massacres and atrocities (moderate)
- Psychological trauma themes (frequent)
Credits
- Director
- Ari Folman
- Cast
- Ari Folman, Mickey Leon, Ori Sivan, Yehezkel Lazarov, Ronny Dayag, Shmuel Frenkel, Zahava Solomon
Official synopsis
An Israeli film director interviews fellow veterans of the 1982 invasion of Lebanon to reconstruct his own
The Double
Make a night of it
Pair this with Perfect Blue (1998)
Both use animation to explore fractured memory and psychological trauma.
Total runtime: 1h 30m + 1h 22m = 2h 52m
