Gideon Raff

Gideon Raff

Legende – Alain Goldman

Israel. 1960. The tension on the northern border is at its peak. The Golan Heights, under Syrian occupation, overlooks the Sea of Galilee and the surrounding Israeli settlements. The fishermen and kibbutz members who work the land, constantly endure the threat of random Syrian bombings that violate the stillness. The Syrians build fortifications on the Golan Heights. Their weapons, for the most part, are procured from the Soviet Union. Israel knows very little about what’s taking place on the other side of the border, therefore it doesn’t know how to defend itself against the perpetual danger. The Prime Minister wants a solution. The Head of the Mossad, Little Isser, decides they must send a spy into the lion’s den to get an understanding of the mindset on the other side of the border.

“The Spy” is a full length film inspired by the life of the most famous Mossad agent, Eli Cohen. It documents his life from the moment he decided to take on the dangerous mission until he was captured and hanged in Martyr’s Square in Damascus in 1965. Eli’s incredible ability to penetrate the Syrian hubs of power and become an integral part of the Ba’ath establishment, makes this spy story even more unusual, and Eli himself a revered spy, not only in Israel but around the world, even in the Arab countries. However, the story is much more complex than “just another” spy movie, because it is a psychological examination of a man who exceeded the task he was asked to perform, a man who had a constant need to prove himself, a need that possibly led to his capture.

 “The Spy” documents the significant relationships in Eli’s life – with his wife Nadia, with Yitzhak, his Mossad operator, and obviously his relationship with his friends in Syria, including the Syrian President, the man who will ultimately determine Eli’s punishment.