Walk On Water review

With World War Two a 60-year-old memory and Israeli/Palestinian hostilities raging on his doorstep, Mossad hitman Eyal (Lior Ashkenazi) is assigned to track down geriatric Nazi Alfred Himmelman and exterminate him "before God does". With the present-day cycle of violence, this appears a severe misplacement of resources. And, as Eyal spends two weeks undercover with Himmelman's estranged grandchildren, Axel and Pia, while suicide bombers ravage the Holy Land, prickly questions about bygones surface. Eyal's intolerant rage is tested by the slightly too perfect do-gooder outlook of his "pseudo liberal German peacenik" charges and, troubled by Axel's open homosexuality, he struggles to maintain the emotional aloofness required of professional killers. Forgiveness, understanding and the burden of ancestral sins guide Eytan Fox's efficient thriller and, thanks to the compelling Ashkenazi, the challenges faced are awash with much appreciated humour.